Sonic Forces Chapter 2
by Ultimate anarchy
Summary: 6 months has passed since the Eggman Empire crumbled at the hands of Sonic and the Resistence. A new enemy captures Classic and Modern Eggman and weilds the power of the Phantom Ruby. Sonic and friends has been defeated by the new threat and 100% of the world has been conquered. The resistance has been reformed and they must defeat this new foe and take back the world once again.
1. The Phantom Terrorist

**Hello, Everyone. I've decided to start writing my own sequel to Sonic Forces. This story is connected to the ending of Sonic Mania Plus and Memories of Infinite's Past (My first story that fleshes out Infinite's background and character). I'll be honest with you all, i'm kinda nervous with this one. Because i'm attempting to make a fascinating Sonic story and get everyone's character done correctly. So I'm hoping that this story can somehow impress you all as Sonic fans. It's rated T because the theme of the story is much darker and more violent than the games. But there is no swearing or blood. I hope you guys like it. (Warning: For those who haven't red my previous story "Memories of Infinite's past", I recommend you read that first so you can get a better understanding of this story as it goes on.)**

* * *

[Strange Facility]

Taking place 6 months after Sonic Forces, inside a dark room, a mysterious figure is seen putting on his armor and he somehow has the Phantom Ruby attached to his chest like Infinite did. After putting on his armor, he puts on his helmet. The figure is a tall man wearing a black armor with silver strips on the arms and there is a cut out hole on it's chest for the phantom ruby. He is wearing a black-colored helmet with long ears. Both of his eyes are covered by the helmet's red visors. After putting on his helmet, the figure walks up to a mirror to see his reflection. The figure now starts using the ruby's power to create a dark-red aura around his body. His armor even glows white after using his power. The villain laughs in satisfaction.

"Perfect." He said.

The villain also has a deep and chilling voice. While he is still looking at himself in the mirror, a soldier opens the door and calls out to him.

"Sir. Are you ready?" said the soldier.

"Yes. I am." He said while looking back at the soldier.

The figure leaves the room and is walking in the hallways with his soldier following him. The hallway and floor is built with light blue metal walls, and the doors open automatically. The latter enters a laboratory and Modern and Classic Eggman are seen tied up against the wall, with three more soldiers guarding them. Modern and Classic Eggman looks beat up. They have bruises on their faces, one of the lens on their glasses are broken, and their suit and pants are torned up. The figure approaches the two scientists and starts talking to them.

"I believe I should thank you two. This armor and helmet feels fantastic." He said.

Both Modern and Classic Eggman looks at the figure with anger on their faces.

"You insolent fool!" said Classic Eggman.

"If you think we'll let you get away with this, you've got another thing com-"

Before Modern Eggman can finish his sentence, the figure uses his telekinesis to choke and lift the two scientists in the air.

"Threatening won't get you anywhere. You both should know that by now. I could just vaporize you on this very spot, but… hehe… I'd just be putting you out of your misery." He said.

The villain releases Modern and Classic Eggman from his telekinesis choke. They both start coughing and wheezing afterwards.

To his soldiers. "I don't need these two right now. Take them back to the prison cells. Keep them locked up and...continue to torture them." He said.

"Yes sir." Said the three soldiers.

They grab Modern and Classic Eggman by their arms and takes them away.

"Take your hands off of me!" Classic Eggman said.

"Release me now or you'll regret it!" Modern Eggman said.

"You ain't seen the last of us!" said Classic Eggman.

"We'll have our revenge! Dr. Eggman will rise again! I SWEAR, WE WILL!" Said Modern Eggman.

"Oooooo… I'm so scared. Hahahaha. Yeah, right." Said the figure.

"Are you going to commence world domination now?" The soldier asks.

"No. Not yet. I want to try out this new power on a certain city." He turns around and starts walking out of the lab. "Let's go."

"Sir."

The figure stops walking and answers the soldier. "What is it?"

"Pardon me for asking, but which city are we going to attack first?"

The figure starts chuckling after being asked that question.

* * *

[Mystic Jungle, day]

Meanwhile in Mystic Jungle, Shadow and Omega are infiltrating Eggman's Facility. They are running through the facility and for some strange reason, there are no alarms going off nor are there robots coming out to stop the duo. Rouge contacts Shadow from his wrist communicator.

"Shadow, Omega. How's it going out there?" Said Rouge over radio.

"It's strange. The alarms aren't going off and no robots out to try and stop us. I don't like it." Said Shadow.

"Scanners indicate no threat detected." Said Omega.

Over Radio. "No alarms and robots…? It's not like the doctor to not have any security in his facility." said Rouge.

"No, it's not." Said Shadow.

* * *

[Dr. Eggman's laboratory]

Shadow and Omega manage to find and break into Eggman's lab.

"DOCTOR-" said Shadow.

The duo see nothing but laboratory capsules. No sign of Eggman nor Orbot and Cubot anywhere.

"Empty?" Shadow questions.

"Scanners activate." Said Omega. Omega is searching around the lab using his scanner to find Eggman. He scans the main computer and finds Eggman's finger-prints. "DNA detected. Last seen from primary target, 6 months ago." Omega looks down on the floor and sees multiple foot prints. Then he looks up and see's more fingerprints on the capsules. "More DNAs detected. Identities unknown."

Contacts Rouge. "Rouge, we've manage to break into the lab but Eggman's not here."

Over Radio. "This doesn't seem right… Eggman hasn't been seen in months. Could it be that he's relocated somewhere else?"

"Not sure. But Omega's scanners shows there were more people in this lab. Whoever these guys are, they must have something to do with the Doctor's disappearance." Said Shadow.

Over Radio and to Omega. "Omega. Are you able to track where Eggman went off to?" Rouge asks.

"Negative." said Omega.

"It appears that my hunch is correct. There's no doubt the doctor is planning something." said Shadow.

Over Radio. "Well he- huh?!" said Rouge.

"Rouge, what's wrong?" Shadow asks.

"I'm picking up an emergency call from Grand Metropolis."

Rogue turns on the broadcast. In the radio, there are massive explosions, laser fire, civilians screaming, and the signal is under heavy static.

"HELLO?! *Static* HELLO?! CAN ANYONE *Static* HEAR ME?! WE'RE UNDER ATTACK! *Static* WE NEED BACK-UP- immed- *Signal's Breaking up*."

Rouge loses contact with the signal. "I've lost the signal - that's not good! Shadow! Omega! It sounds like Grand Metropolis is in danger."

"Is it the doctor's doing?" Shadow asks.

"Not sure. But you two have got to get there QUICK!" said Rouge.

"- - On it!" said Shadow.

"- - Affirmative!" said Omega.

They both exit the laboratory and heads to Grand Metropolis.

* * *

[Grand Metropolis, day]

In Grand Metropolis, the entire city is under attack. There are tanks and soldiers destroying everything, and the citizens are screaming and running away from the terrorists. The Metropolis soldiers are engaging in battle with the enemies but they're losing the battle because the terrorists has a bigger army and more manpower than them. Shifting off to another area in the city, a group of terrorists are cornering a group civilians with the intention to gun them all down only for Sonic and Tails to appear and take out the soldiers, causing the civilians to cheer on the duo.

"Everyone ok?" said Sonic.

"Yes, thank you very much!" said one of the civilians.

"No problem." Said Tails.

Sonic and Tails sees more soldiers and a tank are coming their way.

"Tails. Get everyone to safety, I'll handle these guys." Said Sonic.

"Roger!" said Tails.

Tails leads the civilians to somewhere safe while Sonic is fighting off with the terrorists. The soldiers are shooting at the hedgehog only for him to effortlessly dodge and takes them out by punching and kicking them down. Sonic takes out the tank by using his homing attack. Sonic smirks after an easy victory.

"Hehehe…" Sonic chuckles.

Suddenly, the knocked out soldiers started disappearing in a glitch-like effect and Sonic noticed.

"Huh…? They vanished." Sonic is starting to remember that Zavok and Shadow disappeared the same way back in Sonic Forces. "Wait. Just like…"

Tails returns back to Sonic.

"Sonic."

Looks at Tails. "Tails. Did you manage to get the civilians to somewhere safe?"

"Yes."

"Good. Come on, there's no time to stand around. We've gotta save everyone else!" said Sonic.

Sonic and Tails runs off to save Grand Metropolis from being destroyed by the unknown terrorists. As time is going by, the duo is destroying the tanks, saving other civilians, and they are taking out the soldiers. Each time they beat a soldier, the enemy vanishes in a glitch-like effect. They stop for a moment.

"They're all disappearing!" said Tails.

"What are these guys? Do you think Eggman and Infinite are behind this?" Sonic asks.

"Can't be! Eggman normally uses robots to attack cities and Infinite and the phantom ruby are gone!" said Tails.

Then they resume fighting. Meanwhile somewhere else in Grand Metropolis, the Metropolis Troops are shooting at the villain, who is flying and looking down at them in disappointment. None of their shots are affecting him in the slightest.

"I'm disappointed. I expect more of a challenge after all this time."

The villain fires an energy blast from his palm at the soldiers, incinerating every last one of them in the process. The villain teleports to another location, where there are more Metropolis soldiers fighting against his army. He fires an energy beam at their tank, causing it to explode. The villain laughs and fires a couple more energy blasts at the soldiers only for Sonic to appear and uses his light-speed dash to grab and get them out of the blasts' range.

"What?!" said the villain.

The soldiers cheers on Sonic for saving them. Tails drops down and lands right next to Sonic.

"Everyone go get to safety. We'll take it from here." Said Sonic.

The soldiers listen to Sonic and runs off to somewhere else. Sonic and Tails turns and faces the villain.

"So… that's Sonic the hedgehog." He said to himself.

Sonic and Tails notice that the phantom ruby is on the villain's chest. They are shocked to see that the gemstone is not destroyed.

"Is that…?" Tails asks.

"THE PHANTOM RUBY?!" both said.

"Oh? So you two know about this stone as well, huh?" The villain asks.

"We could've sworned the Phantom Ruby was destroyed." Said Tails.

"Who are you? Infinite…?" Sonic asks.

"Infinite? Who is this "Infinite" you speak of?" He asks. _"I _am The Phantom Terrorist."

"The Phantom Terrorist?" Tails ask.

"Well, Phantom Terrorist, I'm not a big fan of anyone who's trying to destroy cities and terrorizing civilians. So if you don't want to risk getting an ol' fashion beatdown, I suggest you give up now." Sonic demands.

"Hmph. Well… If you want me to surrender, Hedgehog, you're gonna have to make me."

Sonic scoffs at the villain. "Alright then. Don't say I didn't warn you."

Sonic then charges at the villain with his boost and jumps in the air to attack him only for him to quickly dodge and kick Sonic to a nearby building's glass wall, shattering it to pieces on impact.

"Sonic!" Tails shouts.

Tails then flies up and attacks the mysterious phantom terrorist with his tail spin only for the evil-doer to dodge and punch the Fox hard in the stomach.

"Get lost, boy!" said The Phantom Terrorist.

The villain then grabs Tails by his… tails. Then he spins him around in a circle and throws him hundreds of meters away. Sonic gets back up and attacks the terrorist using his boost again. The villain decides to charge at the hedgehog with his own boost ability. They both clashed and they were knocked back. Sonic lands back on the ground while The Phantom Terrorist is still flying in the air. He fires multiple energy blasts at Sonic only for the latter to dodge by jumping up in the air but the evil-doer flies to him and punches the hedgehog in the face. Sonic is sent flying by the punch. The villain then teleports behind Sonic and punches him in the stomach, sending the latter to fall on the ground. After Sonic hit the ground hard, the villain teleports beside him and kicks him through multiple buildings. The Phantom Terrorist chases after Sonic. Sonic crashes into a large 18 wheeler and gets back up but he now has bruises all over his body. The villain charges at Sonic with a right-kick only for the latter jump out of the way. Sonic starts charging his light-speed attack as quickly as possible.

Stops charging the attack. "Ready… go!"

Sonic launches at the enemy, knocks him away, and uses the attack again to follow him. Sonic catches up to him and they both are now clashing and exchanging attacks on each other. However, the mysterious figure eventually gets the upper-hand on Sonic and is constantly knocking him around. Sonic uses his Sonic Wind attack on the enemy, but it didn't effect him at all. He uses Sonic Tornado but that didn't do any good either. Sonic then runs away with supersonic speed and the villain follows and catches up to him. They are running and fighting all over the city, casually passing the remaining soldiers, civilians, and tanks. The terrorist easily knocks Sonic down on the ground. Sonic is trying to get back up as The Phantom Terrorist flies back in the air and looks down at him. Sonic looks up at the villain with anger on his face while the figure laughs at him.

"Aren't _you_ the one who's supposed to give _me_ a "Good ol' fashion beatdown?"" The Phantom Terrorist asks. Mocking Sonic.

Meanwhile, Tails finally catches himself and rubs his stomach to sooth his pain.

"Ow! Who is this guy? Oh - Sonic! I've gotta go back and help Sonic." Tails hurries and flies back to Sonic. When he arrived back, he sees Sonic on the ground and is badly beaten. "Sonic!"

"Well, it's been fun." The monster raises his right palm at Sonic and is charging an energy blast. "But it's time for you to die." Tails flies towards Sonic in attempt to save him from The Phantom Terrorist. "Goodbye, 'Hero'." The figure fires his blast. Tails is trying to beat the laser to save Sonic, but he's not fast enough.

"SONIC!" Tails shouts.

Before the blast made contact, Sonic suddenly teleports away, causing the laser to miss it's target. Tails and the terrorist are stunned by what just happened.

"Huh?" said Tails.

"What?!" Looks around. "Where'd he-"

He spotted Shadow and Omega standing on the roof of the tallest building in the area. Sonic is right next to Shadow as the ultimate life-form and his Robot partner gazes upon the villain.

"Shadow! Omega!" said Tails.

Tails flies towards them and helps Sonic up.

To Shadow. "Hehe… Thanks, Shadow. I owe ya one." said Sonic with a smug.

"Hmph." Said Shadow.

"New threat detected. Identification unknown. Tertiary Objective: Destroy enemy target. Initiating battle mode." Said Omega.

Omega activates his guns and missile launchers.

"Who are you?" The villain asks Shadow and Omega.

"I am Shadow. Shadow the hedgehog."

"I am E-123 Omega; The ultimate E-Series Robot."

"So you're the one who's causing all of this, huh?" Shadow asks.

"Yes I am. And I assume that you're Sonic's allies. Very well… I'll just destroy you all at the same time."

The Phantom Terrorist fires an energy beam at all 4 of them only for them to jump out of the way. While in the air, Shadow uses Chaos Spear and fires it at the terrorist. Omega locks onto the villain, preparing to fire his weapons at the latter.

"Target Locked-on. Fire!"

Omega fires his missiles at the villain. Shadow and Omega's attacks made contact with their target and made a big explosion. They all landed on top of the roof of different buildings and gazes upon the explosion. As the dust settles, The Phantom Terrorist came out unharmed. The attacks didn't do anything to him at all. The villain yawns out of boredom, causing Shadow to get irritated.

"Chaos Spear!"

Shadow fires rapid Chaos Spears and Omega fires his laser canons at the monster only for him to dodge by teleporting. Shadow is surprised and looks around to find the villain. The Terrorist reappears in front of Shadow, spooking him.

"Hi." Said The Phantom Terrorist.

Shadow gets angry and round-house kicks him only for him to block and pushes Shadow away using his energy burst. Shadow catches himself and charges at the villain. Shadow is attacking the evil-doer with punches and kicks only for the latter to easily dodge and block all of them as he is laughing at Shadow. Shadow uses Chaos Control to teleport and attack the enemy from behind. The Phantom Terrorist turns and roundhouse kicks Shadow in the face before he could hit him. The hedgehog teleports again but this time, he intends to attack the figure from above. Shadow attacks the villain with a drop-kick only for the latter to block it and punch the Hedgehog, knocking him away. Shadow recovers and charges at the villain again with a Chaos Energy infused punch.

Catches Shadow's punch. "Is that really all you've got?"

The Terrorist pulls Shadow then punches him hard enough in the stomach for him to vomit saliva and send him flying into a nearby building.

"Hey!" Sonic shouts.

Sonic's call got the villain's attention. He turns around and see's Tails carrying Sonic and is flying towards him.

"Time for round 2!" said Sonic.

Tails spins around and throws Sonic at the villain. Sonic curls up to a spin-ball (this attack is called Blue Bomber from Sonic Chronicles). The terrorist dodges Sonic's attack but the hedgehog bounce back up from the roof and attacks the villain again. He blocks Sonic's second attack and pushes the blue hedgehog away. Suddenly, The Phantom Terrorist is being shot at by lasers and manages to deflect most of them. Omega drops down in the air and lands beside Sonic and Tails as he continues firing at the villain.

"Omega!" Said Sonic and Tails.

While shooting. "All enemy targets will be ELIMINATED!"

While deflecting the lasers. "…Enough of this!" said The Phantom Terrorist in annoyance.

The figure uses the phantom ruby's power to blow Sonic, Tails, and Omega off of the roof then fires an energy beam at all three of them. The blast hits them and they were sent to the ground, the blast caused an explosion on impact. As the dust settles, Sonic and Tails are knocked out, and Omega is heavily damaged. His body is broken and electricity is coming out of his damages.

"System…. Damaged. Need… N-N-Need R-Repair…"

Omega collapses and enters shut-down mode.

"Hmph." He said.

While The Phantom Terrorist is looking down at the trio, Shadow fires another chaos spear at him from behind but it doesn't effect him. He turns around and looks at Shadow.

"Back for more?" He said.

Shadow looks at him with a stern look on his face. "Looks like I have no choice. In order to take this guy down, I'll have to use my true power." Shadow thought.

Shadow starts taking off his gold rings. First, he takes off the ring on his right wrist. Then he takes off the ring on his left.

The villain is wondering what Shadow is doing. "Hmm…?"

Suddenly, Shadow's power increased drastically. A giant golden aura of chaos energy is surrounding the hedgehog's body. Before he starts fighting, Shadow picks up his gold rings and puts them in his back pocket.

The Phantom Terrorist is surprised at Shadow's increase of power. "So this is him at full strenght? Interesting." He uses the phantom ruby's power to create a large dark-blue aura around his body and his armor is glowing white. "Come on!"

Shadow and The Phantom Terrorist clashes at each other, and are fighting in the air. Shadow uses Chaos Control to stop time and space. Everything (Including the terrorist) is completely frozen in time. Shadow charges at the villain and attacks him with a Round-house. Much to Shadow's surprise, the terrorist unfreezes himself and blocks Shadow's attack. Time returns to normal.

"What…?"

"Sorry. That won't work."

The Phantom Terrorist uppercuts Shadow into the air then roundhouse kicks him, sending the ultimate life-form into the ground. Shadow recovers and attacks the villain again. Both of them are exchanging attacks for awhile but Shadow is starting to get exhausted while The Phantom Terrorist is having fun. Shadow is trying his best to put the villain down before he get's exhausted, but the enemy is much stronger and faster than he thought. The black hedgehog is slowly tiring out leading the monster to gain the upper-hand and knocks him around all over the city.

"What's wrong? Getting tired already?" The Terrorist punches Shadow in the stomach, causing him vomit saliva. "Then I'll just keep beating on you." Then he punches the ultimate life-form in the face and sent him flying.

"Chaos Spear!"

As Shadow is being blown away, he launches multiple Chaos Spears at the villain but the latter easily dodges them and makes his way towards Shadow. The evil doer begins a vicious assault of punches and kicks on Shadow and he is laughing hysterically at how helpless the hedgehog is against him. Shadow is yelling in pain as The Phantom Terrorist is inflicting a brutal No-Holds-Barred beatdown on him. After crashing into the ground from one of the Phantom Terrorist's blows, Shadow decides to teleports far above the city to get away from the enemy.

"Hey! Come back!" said The Phantom Terrorist.

He charges towards Shadow. As the monster is heading straight for him, the hedgehog is charging his most powerful attack, the Chaos Blast.

"Chaos…" When the villain got close to Shadow, the brooding Hedgehog releases the chaos blast. "BLAST!"

A giant explosion appears in the sky. The pressure of the blast is so powerful, the shockwaves blew away the clouds and can be felt in the city. Meanwhile, Sonic is starting to open his eyes. He looks at the unconscious Tails and the heavily damaged Omega.

"T-Tails… O-Omega…" said Sonic weakly.

The blue Hedgehog looks up in the sky and looks at the aftermath of the explosion. As the dust settles, The Phantom Terrorist has his right hand wrapped around Shadow's neck and he is completely undamaged by the Chaos Blast.

"Hahahahahaha… looks like your final attack didn't work at all. Sad, Isn't it?" The villain tightens his grip and starts choking Shadow. "It seems you've completely lost the will to fight. Oh well. Time to finish this."

He throws Shadow towards Sonic and the others. Shadow lands face-down on the ground inbetween Sonic and Omega. They both weakly look at each other.

"S-Shadow…" said Sonic.

"I-I still… have… some energy… left. Grab… T-Tails." said Shadow.

Sonic reaches and grabs Tails' arm, Shadow grabs Omega's arm, and they, surprisingly, grab each others arms. The Phantom Terrorist charges an energy blast from his left palm and aims it at the beaten heroes.

"Farewell."

Then he fires the blast at them.

"Chaos… Control."

Using the remaining power he had left, Shadow teleports Sonic, Tails, Omega, and himself away before the blast makes contact. The terrorist noticed that they disappeared before the blast hits them.

"Huh? They got away? Here I thought that he's used up all his energy on that attack."

Suddenly, one of his soldiers calls him via wrist communicator.

Over Radio. "Sir. Do you copy? The enemies are retreating. We've won."

"Great work, lieutenant. Now, the world belongs… TO ME! GRRRAAAAAAAH!"

He uses the power of the Phantom Ruby to turn the entire atmosphere dark red and the pressure of the energy is causing the ground the shake.

* * *

[Control Room]

Shadow and the other three appears in Rouge's control room and lands hard on the floor. The surprised bat-girl gets out of her chair and approaches them.

"SHADOW! OMEGA! SONIC?! TAILS?!" She said. Shadow opens his eyes and looks up at Rouge.

"…Rouge." said Shadow.

"I've lost connection with you. Talk to me, Shadow! What happened?!" Shadow is trying to talk to her but he is so exhausted and badly injured, that he is slowly losing conscious. "SHADOW?! SHADOW!"

Suddenly, the entire room starts shaking. Rouge looks around, wondering what's happening.

* * *

[Outer Space, above the earth]

The Phantom Ruby's power is covering the world in darkness. The sky has turned dark red. On Angel island, Knuckles is seen guarding the master emerald. He looks up at the sky and sees that it has turned red.

"What the? What's going on?!" He asks.

* * *

[City, day]

In the city, Team Chaotix are running down the street while the other civilians are looking up at the sky in fear while talking. They stopped running and looks around the place.

"What the heck is going on?!" Vector asks.

"The sky… What happened to the sky?!" Charmy asks.

"I wish I know the answers." said Espio.

Then out of nowhere, large portals appears in front of the civilians. There are demonic soldiers and large army tanks, surrounded by glitch-like aura, coming out of the portals. As soon as they came out, they start firing their lasers and missiles at the civilians. Some of the citizens has been incinerated by the soldiers while running away from them. The Chaotix fights off the soldiers and tanks. While they are fighting, more portals starts appearing. This horrific event is not just happening in the city, it's happening throughout the entire world. Armies are appearing and destroying everything within the world. Up in the sky, The Phantom Terrorist is seen flying in the air, observing the destruction he's causing in amusement.

"Yes. Yes! You're all in _my _reality now. I've dreamed this day for so long! With this power, I can finally be the most powerful and feared being in the world. No one can stop me now!"

As it now starts to thunder and lightning, the menacing monster starts laughing evilly.

* * *

[Doom City]

Three weeks later, 100% of the world has now been conqured by the mysterious villain. Grand Metropolis has been completely destroyed, rconstructed, and is now called "Doom City". Inside, there are signs labeled "Doomsday Corporation" which is the name of The Phantom Terrorist's military organization. The soldiers are forcing innocent people to work like slaves by building more weapons, buildings, statues of the villain in the streets, and they are being mistreated by the soldiers.

* * *

[Doomsday Corp., head office]

Inside the tallest building in the city, The Phantom Terrorist is seen sitting in his large chair as he is overlooking the city through his window. A doomsday corp. soldier enters the office.

"Do you have any leads on the blue hedgehog?" the figure asks.

"We don't sir. The signal tower still hasn't found anything. No sign of the target anywhere." He said.

"Hmph. He's doing a great job at staying hidden, I'll give him that. How's it going out there? Any slave tried to run away?"

"No, sir. All civilians are doing their jobs. Nobody has tried to escape or resist us to this day."

"Good. Go back to your post. If you find Sonic or any of his three allies, contact me and I'll deal with them myself. Same thing goes for anyone who tries to escape."

"Yes, sir."

The soldier leaves the office.

"Hehehe. You can't hide forever, Hedgehog. I, The Phantom Terrorist, will find you."

* * *

[Underground Resistance HQ]

The resistance has built an underground base for a better chance to avoid being detected by the Doomsday corps. Tails (now fully healed) enters the main computer room. Shadow, Sonic, Amy, Team Chaotix, Rouge, Silver, and Knuckles are already gathered.

"I've managed to fix the damages on Omega. It won't be long until he's fully rebooted." said Tails.

"That's good to here, fox boy. Now that everyone is healed up, we need to come up with a plan." Said Rouge.

"Whoever these Doomsday guys are, they sure mean business. They've captured most of the people who once joined us to take down Eggman. Without the rest of our troops, we don't stand a chance." said Vector.

Tails walks up to the computer and types on it. "We have to rescue them. But there's a big problem." Tails pulls a virtual diagram of a large network tower, located in a military base on an island. "Their leader has built a large signal tower that is designed to detect and track down Sonic. It's also likely that it can track me, Shadow, and Omega since he's seen us and knows we're allies with Sonic. We won't be able to rescue our forces while that tower is still operating."

"Looks like we're gonna have to find a way to get that base and shut it down." said Shadow.

"I have an idea. Maybe we can use it to our advantage." Said Tails.

"What do ya have in mind, pal?" Sonic asks.

"If we can hack into the tower's system, we can use it to help us track down the captive resistance members. We could also use it to help us find a way to weaken The Phantom Terrorist's forces."

"That's not a bad idea, Tails." said Silver.

"There's a likely chance that the base is heavily guarded. And we cannot afford to get caught." said Shadow.

"Hey, Espio. You're a ninja. I think you have the best chance at sneaking in there." said Charmy.

"You can also turn invisible, right?" Amy asks.

"Yes. However, I can only stay invisible for a couple of minutes. But even with that, I should be able to get to the tower's control room without being detected." said Espio.

"Great! With that tower in our control, the fight to take back our world will be a piece of cake!" said Sonic.

"Don't get too cocky, we still have to deal with their leader. And as much as I hate to admit it, he's way too strong for all of us to take on." said Shadow.

"Hehe… no problem. All we need to do is search for the Chaos Emeralds, I use them to become Super Sonic, and it'll be time for some payback." said Sonic.

"The emeralds are scattered all over the world and there are Doom corps everywhere. Searching for them will take longer than you think, Sonic." said Tails.

"Plus, we have no clue where the emeralds are located. I say before we start looking, we need that tower in our control." Said Espio.

"I'll start building a device that's capable of letting me hack into the satellite's system. It won't take me long to make it." said Tails.

"Great, Tails. Now everyone, we only have one shot at this, failure is not an option. We took back our world before, now let's do it AGAIN!" said Knuckles.

Everyone chants in agreement.

End of Ch.1


	2. Outpost Infiltration

[Enemy Outpost]

On the island, the satellite is planted inside a heavily guarded enemy outpost. The place is crawling with guards, security cameras, and there are sentry guns. A tiny spy drone made by Tails enters the base. The robot is so small, that it is the size of a normal fly. Tails is monitoring the robot on his computer as he is searching the place to know how tight the security is.

* * *

[Resistance HQ]

While Tails is controlling the drone, everyone else is patiently waiting until they're given the orders to do something. Rouge is pedicuring her nails, Shadow is resting on the wall, Amy is cleaning her hammer, Sonic is relaxing on the floor, and Silver is juggling three rocks using his telekinesis to keep himself occupied. Knuckles approaches Tails.

"Hey, Tails, how's the security?" said Knuckles.

"It's tight. There are cameras everywhere, they've placed sentry guns, and the place is crawling with guards." Said Tails.

"Hmm… Alright then." Said Knuckles. The echidna contacts The Chaotix via earpiece. "Vector. Have you guys made it to the island?"

* * *

[Underwater]

Underwater inside a small submarine, Charmy is looking out the periscope, Espio is putting on a purple diving suit, and Vector is steering the sub.

"We've just made it, Captain." said Vector.

"Yikes! There's a lot of soldiers there!" said Charmy.

"Hmph." said Espio.

Over Radio. "Ok. The security is no laughing matter. There are cameras, sentry guns, and the place is infested with guards. We'll have to take them out first before we begin to take control over the security system. Once we've complete this job, the satellite and the entire outpost will be under the Resistance's control. Think you can handle it, Espio?" said Knuckles.

"I'm more than capable of pulling off an assignment like this." said Espio with confidence.

Over Radio. "That's the spirit! Ok, when you take out a guard, make sure you do it quietly and keep it outta sight. We don't want any other soldier to see you eliminate their comrade." said Knuckles.

"Understood." said Espio.

Over Radio. "Ok, Espio. There are 6 soldiers, 5 sentry guns, and there are security cameras placed on the side of the walls. I've already found the security room and put the drone on stand-by mode. All you need to do is take out all the guards without getting caught. When you're done, contact me and I'll take care of the rest." said Tails.

"Very well. Team Chaotix out." said Espio.

"Alright, pal, it's all up to you. We'll be here waiting for ya when you're done." said Vector.

"Be careful out there, Espio." said Charmy.

"Roger." said Espio.

Espio gets out of the submarine and swims up to the island.

* * *

[Enemy Outpost]

Espio swims up shore and he quietly enters the island. He hides behind a tree and sticks his head out. He sees there are two Doom soldiers and two surveillance camera's guarding the front entrance.

"Hmm… I'll need to lure those guards away from the door. But how?" Espio looks around the area. He looks up and sees that there are coconuts planted on top of the tree. "Hmm…"

At the gate, the two soldiers are standing on guard duty. Suddenly, one of them sees a bush shaking hard and heard a noise coming from behind it.

"Huh?" said Guard #1

"What's wrong?" said Guard #2

"I think I saw something. I'm going to check it out."

The guard leaves his post to investigate what he had saw. Once he gets behind the bushes, he sees a cracked open coconut next to a rock. He then looks up at the tree and see's more coconuts on top of it.

"Hmm… this must've fallen off the-"

Before he can finish talking, Espio, while in camouflage, knocks him out while he was distracted. The guard disappears in a glitch-like effect after being knocked out. The second guard grows suspicious after the first guard has been gone for a while.

"Hey! Everything alright? HELLO?!" He said.

The guard leaves his post to go find his partner. As he went behind the bushes, Espio knocks him out.

"First two targets neutralized. Now to get inside." said Espio.

Espio goes back into camouflage, runs towards the gate, and jumps over it. He lands on top of a large pole then jumps down from it and lands on the floor. He sneaks up on a guard, who is patrolling behind a cabin out of sight from the cameras and other guards, then knocks him out. After leaving the area, Espio spots a guard entering a tent. There is a sentry gun placed in front of the door. Espio easily sneaks past the gun using his camouflage and enters the tent. Inside, there is a large table with a couple of different laser guns placed on it. The guard is checking the tent for any intruders. Espio quietly gets behind him and knocks him out. Afterwards, he leaves the tent and sneaks past the sentry gun.

"So far, so good." Espio thought.

Espio spots two guards talking to each other. They are standing in front of a sentry gun and there is a surveillance camera nearby. While hiding behind a hut, Espio picks up a rock and throws it at the back of the sentry gun to make a noise. The two guards hears the sound.

"What the-" said guard #1.

"What was that?" Guard #2.

"It came from over there. Come on!" said Guard #1.

The two guards walks towards the hut. They walked away from the sight of the surveillance camera and they are behind the sentry gun. Espio gets behind the two guards and knocks them both out at the same time.

"All targets neutralized." The chameleon takes out his wrist communicator and contacts the Resistance HQ. "Espio here. All guards are down."

Over Radio. "Good work, Espio. Now head back to the sub. Tails will handle the rest." said Knuckles.

"Understood. Espio out." Espio jumps over the walls and heads back to submarine. When he made it back to the beach, the submarine comes up from underwater and Vector opens the hatch.

"Nice work, pal. Now lets get outta here." said Vector.

Espio enters the sub and Vector closes the hatch. The submarine goes back underwater and Team Chaotix are heading back to the Resistance HQ.

* * *

[Control Room]

Over Radio. "Alright, time to make this outpost under The Resistance's control." said Tails.

The drone takes out a couple of electrical cords and inserts them into the computer system unit. Computer hacking screen are showing on the computer screens. After minutes of hacking, the computer screens return to normal.

Over Radio. "Ok. Now lets see if it worked." said Tails.

The security system has now been temporally shut off. The cameras and the sentry guns are turned off. And the satellite's antenna has turned from red to blue. The Resistance now has control over the outpost and the satellite.

* * *

[Resistance HQ]

"Yes! We now have control over the satellite!" said Tails.

Gets up. "Aw yeah! Way to go, Tails!" said Sonic.

Everyone, except Shadow, cheers on Tails for a job well done. The Chaotix enters the HQ.

"Did ya manage to control the satellite, Tails?" Vector asks.

"Yes." said Tails.

"ALRIGHT!" said Charmy.

Espio smiles in satisfaction.

"Alright everyone, now that the satellite's out of the way, we can now focus on taking back our world. " Said Knuckles.

Tails brings up the satellite's tracking system on the display monitor. The satellite is tracking all of D.O.O.M's prison facilities, military bases, and all of the soldiers and tanks patrolling every city in the world.

"The Phantom Terrorist has captured our soldiers and many innocent civilians. Some are being held in prison facilities located in different cities around the world. And some of them are being forced to work like slaves. He's completely destroyed Grand Metropolis and reconstructed it into his very own city. He also has military bases where he orders some of his soldiers to manufacture bombs, weapons, or any other types of arsenal he could come up with." said Knuckles.

"My question is: who is this guy? And how is The Phantom Ruby still around? I thought it was destroyed during the fight with Eggman." said Silver.

"Your guess is as good as mine, Silver. When the other me, Buddy, and I took out the Death Egg Robot, we thought that the ruby was destroyed along with it. Guess that gemstone is indestructible. Come to think of it, I haven't seen Eggman since then." said Sonic.

"We haven't heard anything from the doctor since the war. So I had a hunch that he might be plotting another great scheme. We've decided to infiltrate his facility and when we arrived, there was no security there and The Doctor wasn't in his lab. Omega scanned that Eggman was not alone. There was more people there in the lab with him." said Shadow.

"Do you think Eggman has something to do with Doom? He created Infinite. So could he have created the Phantom Terrorist too?" Amy asks.

"It's possible. But why wasn't Eggman there when Grand Metropolis was under attack? It's not like him to execute his "greatest invention" without showing up to gloat about it." said Tails.

"Perhaps his experiment turned on him and is currently locked up somewhere in the facility. That's why he never showed up." said Shadow.

"Well maybe we can find some information on this "Phantom Terrorist" and how the Phantom Ruby survived on our missions." said Knuckles.

"What's the plan, Captain?" Silver asks.

"In order to combat the Terrorist, we need the power of the Chaos Emeralds. Without them, we don't stand a chance. We also need to destroy the factories in order to lower his ammunitions. Last thing we need to do is to break into the prison facilities to rescue the civilians and former resistance members. We'll need all the help we can get in order to take down Doom. They're going to try to stop us at all cost, so be prepared for heavy resistance."

"Heh. No problem! We'll mow down those clowns without breaking a sweat." said Sonic.

"Rouge. Do you still have your treasure scope?" Knuckles asks.

"Of course I do. A great treasure hunter like myself always keeps up with her things." said Rouge.

"Good, cause you're gonna need it for this job. Shadow, you work with Rouge on finding the Chaos Emeralds. With Doom Corps everywhere, she'll need some backup. Sonic, Tails, you two are going to help me take down the factories."

Sonic gives Knuckles a smug look. "Sounds good to me." said Sonic.

Tails nods in agreement. "Mm-hm."

"Amy, Silver, you work with Team Chaotix on breaking into the prisons and rescue the members. When you bring them back to HQ, give them their wispons and send some of them over to the resistance outpost. We must protect the base and the satellite at all cost. Every time we take down their territories in a city, we'll take control over it."

Tails is typing on his computer. "I've found the Chaos Emerald's locations." Tails pulls up the signal tracking of the emeralds on the display monitor. "Lets see. The red Chaos Emerald is located in the mountains. The green Emerald is located in seaside hill. The yellow Emerald is in Green hill. The blue Emerald is in Chemical Plant. The white one is somewhere in Station Square. The purple one is in the Casino. And the light blue one is in Emerald Coast. It's up to you two to find where they are within these locations."

"Not a problem." said Rouge.

"Hmph." said Shadow.

"Alright, people. We all know our roles. Now let's get out there, kick Doom's butt, and save the world." said Knuckles.

Everyone chants.

* * *

[Doom City]

Meanwhile in Doom City, the Phantom Terrorist is seen standing on top of the roof of his headquarters, overlooking the city.

"Ah… such a beautiful sight. I wonder how the doctors are holding up. I think I should pay them a visit later on." Suddenly, he recites what Sonic called him. ("Who are you? Infinite…?") "Infinite? Who is Infinite? Why did Sonic-"

"FATHER!" Someone shouts from below.

The Phantom Terrorist hears the shout and looks down. "Hmm?"

On the ground. There are three civilians. One was an adult male blue wolf and the other two are smaller and younger female blue wolves. The male wolf is on his knees coughing and hacking while the other two are consoling him.

"Father, Father you have to hang in there!" said young wolf #1.

A couple of soldiers approaches them.

"Hey! Who told you to stop working?" said soldier #1.

"We're sorry, sir. Our father is getting sick. Can you please let him rest?" said Young wolf #2.

"You dare ask us to give you a break? You know the rules! No one goes on break unless we tell you to." said Soldier #2.

"We've been working since morning without a break. Please…" said Young wolf #2.

"I-It's o-okay. I-I'll be fine." Father wolf said weakly.

The Phantom Terrorist flies down to investigate the situation. "What's going on here?" he asked.

The other slaves looks at him in fear and starts talking.

"— Oh no! It's him!"

"— Not good."

"— Don't look. Just get back to work."

"We have a couple of slaves here asking for a break." said Soldier #1.

"Really?" said The Phantom Terrorist.

"O-Our father needs more rest than we do. We understand the rules, sir. But he can't continue to work like this. Please, please let him rest." said Young wolf #1.

"Girls… *Cough* *Cough*"

"….Very well." They both smile and gasp brightly. "But." Then they look at him confused. "You've got five minutes."

"Five minutes?!" Both said.

"Did I stutter?" The Phantom Terrorist asked.

"But, sir. Five minutes is nowhere near enough." said Young wolf #1.

The father stands back up. "I-It's alright, girls. I-I can still go on."

"Father." Both said.

"Look. Your father's a champ. You two should be proud." said The Phantom Terrorist.

"I apologize, sir. It's just a cold. I'll be fine." He starts coughing heavily and collapses back on the ground.

"Father! Please, he is sick and needs a long rest. He can't work like this!" said Young wolf #1.

"Long rest, eh? Okay then." Turns and looks at his soldiers. "Both of you might wanna hold onto something."

"UUH! Roger." Both soldiers said.

The soldiers runs away from their leader as he raises his left palm at the civilians. He creates a portal and flies up in the air to safety. The civilians are confused and frightened.

"W-What's he doing?"

He then snaps his finger causing the portal to activate a powerful suction vacuum. The portal is sucking everything in. The soldiers holds onto the corner of the building walls while the other nearby civilians are holding onto poles and fire hydrants. The three citizens are pulled into the portal. All three of them gets sucked into the portal and it closes afterwards. The other civilians are very shocked.

"There. Now you can "rest" in Null Space." The Phantom Terrorist turns towards the other civilians. "Listen UP! What you've just saw was a few slaves being sucked into a dimension called "Null Space". A dimension where nothing exists. Anyone who gets sucked in, can never escape. You'll live out the rest of your lives there. Now if you value your lives, I suggest you follow the rules. You're not allowed to rest until you've been given the orders to do so. Anyone asks, demands, or argues with me about breaks, will be sucked into the dimension along with your friends. If anyone gets injured or is too ill to work, my soldiers has the authority to terminate you on the spot. If you even think about trying to escape, you will be imprisoned and suffer a severe punishment that will make you wish for death. Do I make myself CLEAR?!"

"Y-Yes, sir!" said the people.

"Good. Now get back to work!" Everyone does what The Phantom Terrorist says and gets back to work. Suddenly, he gets a call from one of soldiers.

Over Radio. "Sir. Do you copy?"

"Yes. What's the problem?"

Over Radio. "We've found some more survivors but they're giving us trouble. We need your assistance, ASAP."

"What's your location?"

"Westopolis."

"I'm on my way."

The leader teleports away.

End of Chapter 2.


	3. Survivors

[Grasslands]

The chapter begins with Team Sonic heading off to the Chemical Plant. Sonic and Knuckles are running, and Tails is flying above them while holding and looking at his Miles Electric device.

"The Phantom Terrorist has set-up a factory where he has some of his soldiers build nuclear explosions for him in the Chemical Plant."

"Chemical Plant, huh?" said Sonic.

"They must be using the chemicals to create the weapons." said Tails.

"We need to infiltrate the factory, storm through heavy resistance, and shut it down." said Knuckles.

"Shut it down? As in stopping the production of the weapons? Why not just destroy the entire factory?" Sonic asks.

"Doing that would be too dangerous, Sonic. Chemical Plant is polluted with pipes that contain different types of strange chemicals. According to the satellite, this factory is the largest building in the plant. If we were to cause the factory to explode, the flame reaction to chemicals could cause the entire plant to be set on fire." said Tails.

"Plus, shutting down the factory would cause the Phantom Terrorist to lose control over the nuclear production. Once we take away his control over it, The Resistance can use the weapons to increase the chances of defeating his army."

Sonic gives Knuckles a smug look. "Hmm… not bad, Knuckles. Maybe you're not such a Knucklehead after all." said Sonic.

"Knock it off, Sonic!" said Knuckles.

"Hey. That was a compliment. Alright, you two. Full-speed ahead!" said Sonic.

"Ok." said Tails.

"Alright!" said Knuckles.

Sonic increases his speed as Tails and Knuckles follows him to the Chemical Plant.

* * *

[Westopolis]

Meanwhile in Westopolis, the buildings are on fire, and a group a civilians are lying dead in the streets with wispons planted next to their bodies. Suddenly, one of the civilians is still alive as he opens his eyes but he is too injured to stand. He is a black cat and he is sitting down with his back against a building wall.

"T-This is *Cough* *Cough* madness…. B-But *Cough* I… must… n-not give in." he said.

The Phantom Terrorist notice that one of the civilians are still alive.

"Well, well. One of them is still alive." He walks up to the survivor. The civilian looks up at the evil-doer with wide-eyes once he got close to him. "That wasn't very smart, my friend. If you had played dead, I probably would've never noticed." said The Phantom Terrorist.

"Y-You…. You won't win…" He said.

"Ah. Holding on to your false hope, I see."

The terrorist grabs the man by his throat and picks him up.

"Gack… Ack… Ugh!"

"Now, care to explain to me why you thought rebelling against my men was a good idea?" Phantom Terrorist asks.

"W-We refuse… to… let you… control us…"

"I see. But what good will bravery do for you if you're up against an opponent far superior to you in every way?"

The survivor smirks and chuckles at the terrorist. "We won't… go down… without a fight. You may have destroyed us, but you… won't get away with this. Sonic will take you and your army down…for sure."

The Phantom Terrorist decides to put him down. While on the ground, the civilian holds his throat and starts coughing.

"Sonic? The so-called 'World's Savior' will stop me? Really? If that was the case, where is Sonic? If he's willing to save this world, why hasn't he shown himself for the past three weeks?"

"Don't think that he's given up. He'll come back! And when he do, you're going down."

"Heh. We'll see about that." said The Phantom Terrorist.

The terrorist fires an energy blast at the survivor and it vaporizes him. Screams can be heard from the man as he's being vaporized.

* * *

[Mountains]

In the mountains, Shadow and Rouge are seen searching for the red Chaos Emerald. Along the way of their search, they are fighting off some of Eggman's robots.

"Eggman's Robots? They're still around?" Rouge asks.

"The Phantom Terrorist must've ordered them to patrol the mountains. In case if there's some survivors hiding out here. Have you picked up where the emerald is located?" said Shadow.

Rouge checks her scope. It's showing her the direction where the emerald is located. She points to the left. "That way!"

Rouge flies over to the left direction. Shadow follows her by skating on platforms and leaping from mountain to mountain. As she is flying, a group of buzz bombers appears and fires lasers at Rouge.

"How annoying." She said.

Rouge dodges the lasers, destroys the robots with her kicks, then continues flying as Shadow is following her. Eventually, she stops flying and lands on top of a rocky platform. Shadow lands right behind her. The duo walks towards the red Chaos Emerald.

"Well, there you are." Rouge picks up the emerald. "One down, six to go."

Shadow turns around and starts walking. "Let's get moving."

Rouge puts the emerald in her pocket and turns towards Shadow. "Where to next?" she asks.

"Seaside Hill." said Shadow.

Shadow leaps off the platform and Rouge follows him.

* * *

[Westopolis]

Back in Westopolis, The Phantom Terrorist is seen talking with three of his soldiers.

"Ok. What happened?" Phantom Terrorist asks.

"We were patrolling the area. The guy you've just disposed of was the first survivor we saw. He ran from us and we were chasing after him all the way to this spot. Turns out he was leading us into an ambush. They had us outnumbered and took out four of us." said Soldier #1.

"Did you at least took out any one of them?" Phantom Terrorist asks.

"Yes. We at least took out three of them." Said Soldier #1.

"It seems that some of the survivors are deciding to fight back." Said Phantom Terrorist.

"And they somehow got their hands on some kind of weapons." said Soldier #2.

The Phantom Terrorist picks up a white Wispon and looks at it. "What kind of weapons are these? I've never seen anything like this before. Better take this with me and have it analyzed." He thought. The terrorist puts the wispon away in his back-pocket.

"I admire their bravery. Too bad they weren't strong enough." said Soldier #2.

"Do you believe that Sonic will come back and try to stop us?" said Soldier #3.

"No way! Our leader nearly killed him the first time they've fought. He's a dead hedgehog if he tries." said Soldier #1.

"Plus, we still have that satellite up. He's not coming out of hiding without being spotted." said Soldier #2.

"Correct, there's no need to worry about him. I'm going back to HQ to study this weapon. There could be more survivors out here so stay alert and watch your surroundings. I'll send in some more soldiers to assist you. Now, get back to work." said Phantom Terrorist.

The terrorist teleports away.

"You heard the man, let's go." said Soldier #1.

The three soldiers walks away from the area. While they are walking, there are two figures watching them from the roof. Both figures are wearing brown coats and they have the hoods over their heads. One is crouching and the other is standing.

"The Phantom Terrorist." Said the crouching figure. He observes the dead survivors and he figures out that they tried to fight back. "What were they thinking?" The standing figure grits it's teeth in frustration. The crouching figure stands up and looks at his partner. "There's nothing we can do now. Let's get back to the hide-out."

The other figure calms down, nods in agreement, and they both leaps away.

* * *

[Survivor's Den]

The strange figures jumps down from the rooftops, enters a dark alley, and walks up to a steel door. One knocks at the door, while the other one is on the lookout for someone following them. Behind the door, a man opens the peephole and sees the figures.

"What's the code?" he asks.

"Freedom."

The man closes the peephole and opens the door. The man is a white anthropomorphic rabbit and he is armed with a blue wispon.

"Welcome back."

The figures enters and the rabbit closes the door behind them. Inside, there are many other survivors. Wolves, cats, and dog citizens. There is a large table with chairs placed around it and a radio placed on it. There are a couple of couches placed in front of the wall, a refrigerator, snacks, canned food, and water all over the floor. And there are a pile of wispons placed in front of the wall. The civilians sees the figures and approaches.

"You guys are back. Did you find anymore survivors?" a yellow cat civilian asked.

The figures took off their hoodies. Revealing that it's Zero and the Avatar.

"We did, but… they didn't make it." said Zero.

"What?"

"When we were out looking, we've heard someone scream and we decided to check it out. Once we got to the location, it was too late. The Phantom Terrorist was there along with some of his soldiers… They've killed every last one of those survivors." Said Zero.

The Avatar grits their teeth and clinches their fists in anger. One of the dog civilians bangs his fist on the table with a look of sadness on his face.

"DARN IT! Why does this have to happen again?! It was bad enough with Eggman, now another madman comes and conquers the world?!" Tears are coming down his eyes. "Why? Just… why?! Haven't we suffered enough?!"

A couple more civilians walks up to the dog and rubs his back.

Zero looks at the weeping Dog civilian. "I know. This situation is horrific. But all we can do now is to survive." Looks at the cat civilian. "What about the Scavengers? You heard back from them?" Zero asks.

"Yes. They've contact us and said that they've found some more food and water. They should be back soon." He said.

"Good." said Zero.

"Where is Sonic? Why isn't he trying to stop the Phantom Terrorist?" One of the wolf survivors asks.

"Not sure where he is. But I'm certain that he's trying to form a new resistance. This army seems to be just as – if not more dangerous than the Eggman Empire. So he'll need all the help he can get in order to bring down the Terrorist." said Zero.

"Do you think that he'll come and find us? We want to help him take down that monster and his entire army." Said one of the cat survivors.

"Don't know. But until he shows up, we'll keep trying to stay alive and not get caught. Once the Scavengers come back, we will eat and rest up. My partner and I will go back out and find some more survivors tomorrow." said Zero.

"Let some of us come with you this time." Said one of the cats.

"No." said Zero.

"Oh come on, Zero. You two have been out there looking while we stay here. Besides, we got weapons of our own and some of us are former members of the resistance."

"Maybe so. But these Doom soldiers are ruthless. Once you're spotted, they'll either capture and take you to Doom city – or they'll gun you down without question. My priority is to find survivors, keep them safe, and help them survive until Sonic comes back." said Zero.

"Zero, we're not children – we don't want you to treat us like we are. We get that you're trying to protect us, but you and your friend can't keep doing all of this by yourselves. You need back-up. What if you get caught and the enemies got you outnumbered. Would you be able to take them all down without getting killed? And what if you find some survivors that are sick or wounded, would you be able to carry them on your own without getting spotted?" Zero remains silent. "Exactly. Please, you need us and we need you. So, let us help."

Zero looks at the Avatar. The Avatar nods their head.

"*Sighs* Very well. Few of you, will come with us. The rest of you, will stay here and guard the hideout. When we go back out there, you must follow my lead and make sure you keep yourself out of sight at all cost. Do you understand?"

"Yes." Said all of the survivors.

"Alright then." Looks at the cat survivor. "When was your last contact from the scavengers?" Zero asks.

"About 5 minutes ago." He said.

* * *

[Destroyed Grocery Store]

5 minutes ago, inside a destroyed grocery store, there are 3 anthropomorphic wolves collecting all the remaining food and water and they're putting them inside large brown bags.

"Alright that should be enough." said Scavenger #1. He contacts the survivors via earpiece. "This is the Scavengers. We've collected enough food and water to last us for a while. We're on our way back to Den." He said.

Over radio. "Roger. Be careful."

"Alright, team. Let's get outta here."

The Scavengers begins to leave the store. As they are about to exit the building, the leader sees a group of Doom soldiers approaching the building.

Stops. "Wait a minute." Opens his eyes wide. "The back! Get to the backdoor!"

All three of them rushes to the back door. The soldiers enters the store and they are armed with lasers with flashlights attached to them.

"Check the store. There could be anyone hiding here." said Soldier #1.

"Roger." Said the rest of the soldiers.

* * *

[Westopolis]

The wolves makes it to the back door, quietly opens the door, and exits the building. When they got outside, they were spotted by a nearby tank. The tank aims it's gun at the Scavengers. They screamed and leaps away. The tank fires multiple shots at them only for it to constantly miss them. The explosion caught the attention from the Doom soldiers from inside the store.

"What was that?" said Soldier #3.

"Came from outside! Move!" said Soldier #1.

The soldiers rushes outside and sees the scavengers leaping from building to building and the tank is following them.

"Survivors. After them!" Said Soldier #1.

The soldier jumps up to the buildings and chases after the Scavengers. They start firing their lasers at them.

"This is bad!" said Scavenger #3.

"What do we do?" Scavenger #2 asks.

"We can't lead them back to the hideout and we can't lose them like this. Let's split up!" said Scavenger #1.

The scavengers separated. Scavenger #1 kept going straight while the other two went different directions. Each soldier change directions and follow each Scavenger. Two soldiers are chasing after Scavenger #2, Two soldiers are chasing Scavenger #3, and the last two are chasing after Scavenger #1 along with the tank.

"I don't have a choice." Scavenger #2 thought.

The wolf reaches in the bag and takes out a bag of flour, uses his sharp teeth to bite a couple of large holes in it, and throws it at the soldiers. The flour hits them and it creates a huge smoke strong enough to blind them.

"Argh! Smoke!" said Soldier #1.

"My Eyes! Can't see!" said Soldier #2.

This distraction gave the wolf enough time to escape his pursuers. Once the smoke clears, the soldiers regains their eye-sights and realized that the scavenger has escaped.

"He got away!" said Soldier #2.

"Darn it!" said Soldier #1. He contacts the other soldiers for back-up. "Come in. We've found three survivors, all wolves. One of them escaped while we're still in pursuit of the other two. Requesting back-up and a search party for the escaped target. Over."

Over Radio. "Roger. Back-up's on the way."

"Nothing we can do here. Let's go help the others." said Soldier #1.

The two soldiers leaps away.

Meanwhile, Scavenger #2 is still leaping through buildings. He stops for a moment and looks behind to see if the soldiers are still behind him. He sees that nobody is following him.

"Phew. I lost them. I've got to get back to the hide-out and tell Zero what happened." He said.

The wolf continues on and heads back to the Survivor's Den.

[End of Ch.3]


	4. A Shocking Encounter

**Hey, guys. I just want to inform the readers who never read my first story (Memories Of Infinite's Past) that Zero is Infinite's real name. The newer Chapters will start having a connection to that story. I highly recommend to first read Memories of Infinite's Past to understand more about Zero's character and this on-going story so you won't be so confused. Anyway, I hope you guys are liking Sonic Forces Chapter 2. I'm trying my very best to make sure the Canon characters are in-character and make the story itself more interesting to keep reading. Here's Chapter 4, enjoy.**

* * *

[Nuclear Factory]

The chapter begins inside the Nuclear Factory in the Chemical Plant. The factory is similar to arsenal pyramid from Sonic Forces but it's much more massive. There are a lot of nuclear explosions being created by doom soldiers. Everything is going according to plan, until….

Alarm starts ringing.

"INTRUDER ALERT! INTRUDERT ALERT! INTRUDER ALERT!"

The soldiers stop producing the missiles, grab their lasers, and rushes out to find their intruder.

* * *

[Outside]

The soldiers are shooting at Team Sonic only for the latters to evade their shots. Sonic is chuckling as he runs past the lasers.

"Hah-hah! You guys can't hit me!" said Sonic.

Sonic uses his homing attack, Knuckles uses his fists, and Tails uses his tail-spin to take out the soldiers. The soldiers vanish in a glitch-like effect after being defeated.

"Knock, Knock!" Sonic sings.

Sonic breaks down the front door using his boost ability. The alarms rings louder and more soldiers came out.

"Hey, guys! Long time no see." said Sonic.

"- It's him!"

"- Sonic the Hedgehog?!"

"- But how? I thought the leader already took care of him!"

"- Never mind that! Take them down!"

"Let's wreck this joint!" said Knuckles.

The soldiers open fire at the trio only for them to dodge and Sonic is taking them out with his boost.

"Heh! This is too easy!"

"Bring out the Doom drones! I repeat, bring out the robots-" One of the soldiers said before Sonic takes him out.

"Hey! Quit hogging all the fun!" said Knuckles to Sonic.

Sonic looks at Knuckles and smirks him. "Try to keep up then, Slowpoke!" said Sonic.

Knuckles growls at Sonic. The trio are storming through the factory's defenses. Robots are coming out from walls and fires missiles at them.

"Look out!" Tails shouts.

The trio dodges the missiles. Knuckles charges at one of the robots and goes for a solid punch. The robot activates a purple barrier and it blocks Knuckles' punch.

"What the-"

Knuckles is at close range. The robot takes out a mini laser canon, aims it at Knuckles, and fires it only for the echidna to barely dodge the laser. The robot drops it's barrier and Tails destroys it while it was distracted.

"These robots are equipped with defense barriers!" said Tails.

Sonic uses homing attack on the other robots. They've activated their shields and deflects Sonic's attack.

"Hmph. How about this?" said Sonic.

Sonic charges his spin dash and launches it at the robots. The attack has enough force to break through the barriers and destroys the robots.

"Heheheh." Sonic chuckles.

More soldiers appears and attempts to shoot down Team Sonic.

" – Stop them!"

" – Don't let them through!"

The trio continues to storm through the factory. Taking down every soldier and robots along the way. The alarms are ringing much louder than before.

"INTRUDERS HAS BREACHED THROUGH SECTION 1! ACITVATE SECURITY DEFENSE FORMATION IN SECTION 2!"

Team Sonic has breached through section 1 and enters section 2 of the base. They are met with doom soldiers holding larger laser guns and larger doom robots. The soldiers fires their lasers and the robots are firing rapid gunfire. Knuckles is fighting with the robots while Sonic and Tails are fighting the soldiers.

While dodging bullets and fighting the robots. "These guys are actually putting up a fight.." said Knuckles.

While fighting. "Good. I need this kind of work out!" said Sonic.

Team Sonic eventually defeats the enemies then they continue to storm through the base. They breach through section 2 and they're almost there to the nuclear production lab.

"SECTION 2 SECURITY BREACHED! LOCKDOWN THE NUCLEAR PRODUCTION LAB!"

Multiple security doors are shutting and sentry guns appears in front of each door. Tails uses his tailspin to destroy the sentry guns. After destroying the turrets, Knuckles punches through the security doors. The trio finally makes it to the lab. The last remaining doom soldiers attempts to stop them.

"Hah! Sorry guys, but this factory's ours now." said Sonic.

The trio easily takes down the soldiers and they've cleared the area. The alarms suddenly stops ringing.

"That was fun." said Sonic.

"Now that they're all taken care of, it's time to shut this place down." said Knuckles.

"Tails?" said Sonic.

"On it." said Tails.

The fox flies up to the control panel. "Alright, here goes." Tails sabotages the panel and shuts off the nuclear production. The entire facility has now been turned off. "There. All done."

"Great work, team." said Knuckles.

"What's our next objective?" Sonic asks.

Tails flies back to Sonic and Knuckles. He takes out his miles electric device and looks at the screen.

"There's another factory located in Westopolis." The device scans the factory's purpose. "According to the scans, the Phantom Terrorist is using some of Eggman's technology to build his own robots." said Tails.

"So, it looks like Shadow's assumption was correct. The terrorist has Eggman locked up somewhere." said Knuckles.

"From Chaos, Metal Sonic, The Deadly Six, and now this guy? Eggman sure has rotten luck with making allies." said Sonic.

"Serves him right, though." said Tails.

"Alright, enough about Eggman, let's head off to the second factory. Once we hear back from Amy, I'll tell her to send some of our troops to help take control over this factory." said Knuckles.

"Right." said Sonic and Tails.

The trio runs away, leaving the factory.

* * *

[Survivors Den]

Meanwhile back with Zero and the Avatar, the survivors are talking to each other. Zero is sitting on the couch alone with a sad look on his face. The Avatar notice and they decided to sit right next to him.

"You? What do you want?" Zero asks the Avatar. The Avatar explains their concern for Zero. "Oh. I'm just thinking. Do you think I'm being… overprotective?" The Avatar thinks for a moment then nods their head. "I see. Well, I just don't want them to get hurt. I know they want to help, but it's just…" The Avatar places their hand on Zero's shoulder. Zero smiles at Them. "Thanks. I'll be fine now."

The Avatar gets up and they join the survivors in a chat. Zero thinks about Stryker and the Jackal Squad. As he is thinking about them, tears are slowly coming down from his eyes. "Claire. Brawn. Radar. Everyone. I'm sorry." He said. Then he starts thinking about Shadow. He grits his teeth in clenches his right fist in anger. "Shadow. Someday…I'll get stronger. And when I do… I'll destroy you."

Suddenly, there is a knock on the door. The rabbit survivor looks out the peephole.

"What's the code?" he asks.

"Freedom!" The person outside said.

The rabbit closes the peephole and opens the door. The person outside was one of the scavengers who's escaped from the soldiers. He rushes in and calls Zero.

"Zero!" he shouts.

Zero wipes his face, looks at the Scavenger, and stands up off the couch. "What the?"

"Zero! Everyone! It's an emergency!" he said.

"Whoa, what happened?!" one of the survivors asked.

"Where are the others?"

"The doom soldiers spotted us. We had to split up for a better way to escape. I manage to lose the soldiers who was hot on my tail. But the others are still out there!"

The cat turns on his communicator to contact the other scavengers. "Hello?! Scavengers come in! Where are you?!" He receives no feedback. All he hears is nothing but static. "I'm not picking up a signal!"

The survivors are starting to panic while The Avatar is trying to calm them down. Zero thinks about what happened with the Jackal Squad in mystic jungle then he starts to panic. He runs towards the cat and steals his communicator.

"What the- Hey! Zero!" he shouts.

Zero grabs his sword, sprints out the door, and jumps up to the rooftops.

"Zero!"

"What's he doing?!"

The Avatar orders the others to stay at the Hideout then they go after Zero.

* * *

[Westopolis]

While leaping through rooftops, Zero tries to contact the other Scavengers. "Hello?! Scavengers! Can you hear me?!

Zero is starting to pick up a signal. He hears one of them. "Z-Z-Zero! I hear you!"

"Where are you?!" Zero asks.

"Doom soldier's are chasing me! I'm in the woods. I need back-up, there's too many of them!"

"I'm on my way, hold on!" The Avatar catches up to Zero and he notices. "One of them is in the woods. We need to hurry now!"

The Avatar nods and they continue to leap away.

* * *

[Doom HQ, laboratory]

Inside of Doom HQ, there is a soldier building one of the laboratories equipment. The Phantom Terrorist appears in the laboratory and the soldier notice him.

"Phantom Terrorist? What brings you here, sir?" he asks.

He takes out the wispon and shows it to the soldier. "One of the survivors who attacked us, was using this. I want to know exactly what kind of weapon this is."

"Yes, sir."

The soldier takes the wispon from his boss, places it in a scanner compartment, and starts using the scanner to examine the wispon. The description of the wispon's hardware appears on the computer display monitor.

"It appears that this weapon is called "Wispon". A weapon powered by "Hyper-go-on energy". Powerful energy coming from alien life-forms called "Wisps".

"Wisps?" Phantom Terrorist asks.

"Yes."

"Alien life-forms? How did these guys manage to contact these aliens and use their energy for these weapons?"

"Not sure, sir. The scans just show the weapons design, hardware, and where it's power comes from."

"Could these aliens be connected with the Sonic?" He thought. He grabs the wispon. "I guess I'll have to pay the doctors a visit. Maybe they will give me answers on these "Wisps".

"Is there anything else you need from me, sir?" he asks.

"No. That is all. Go back to what you were doing."

"Yes, sir."

Before he leaves the lab, he gets a call from his soldiers.

Over Radio. "Sir. Do you copy?"

"What is it, now?"

"We're pursuing a survivor but we're having trouble trying to catch him. We need your assistance now."

"Why on earth can't you catch him?"

"He's too fast."

"*Sighs* fine. What's your location?"

"In the woods outside of Westopolis."

"I'm on my way. Note to self, create more useful soldiers. I'm gonna have to put my visit on hold for now."

He teleports away.

* * *

[Somewhere else in Westopolis]

One of the Scavengers is on the ground and cornered by the doom soldiers and the tank. The tank points it gun at the Scavenger and the soldiers are slowly walking towards him. The scavenger is scared out of his mind.

"Don't move." said Soldier #1.

"Try to escape, and we'll open fire." said Soldier #2.

"This can't be happening! No! Zero! Anyone, help me!" The scavenger thought.

The Scavenger closes his eyes shut in pure terror. Just when one of the soldiers begins to handcuff him, Team Sonic appears, destroys the tank, and takes out the soldiers.

"It's okay. You're safe now." Sonic said to the Scavenger.

The Scavenger opens his eyes and looks at Team Sonic in shock. "Y-You're… Sonic! YOU CAME BACK!"

The Scavenger hugs Sonic. "Whoa! Hey! Take it easy!" said Sonic.

"It's a good thing we saw you." said Knuckles.

Releases Sonic. "I'm sorry. You have no idea how happy I am to see you! Thank you for saving me! There are more of us. We've been hoping that we'll someday find you."

"There are more people like you?" Tails asks.

"Yes. We've set up a hide out that's not that far from here. Zero and his partner, have been searching to find more survivors so they can bring them to the hide-out."

"So this Zero guy's your boss, huh?" Sonic asks.

"Yes." He said.

"Well, it's not safe out here. What are you doing out in the open?" Tails asks.

"I'm one of the scavengers of the group. Our job is to find food and water then bring them to the hideout in order to survive. I'm separated from my group because we got spotted and we had to split up to try to escape."

"Do you know where they might've gone to?" Knuckles asks.

"I'm not sure. But I assumed that Zero might've gotten worried and went out looking for them – or they've made it back in one piece. If you guys are trying to rebuild the resistance, I can take you to our hideout. Some of the survivors once joined you in the battle with Eggman."

"That's great. We are looking for more recruits. Take us there." said Knuckles.

"Yes, sir."

The scavenger is taking Team Sonic to the Survivor's den.

"What about the factory?" Tails asks Knuckles.

"That can wait," said Knuckles.

* * *

[Woods]

The last Scavenger is being chased by Doom soldiers in the woods. The soldiers are firing their laser guns at him only for them to miss their target multiple times. Suddenly, one of the lasers hit the Scavenger in the ankle, causing him to fall on the ground and yelp in pain.

"ARGH! DARN IT!"

"We got him!"

The soldiers surround the wolf and slowly approaches him. Suddenly, Zero and the Avatar appears.

"You guys." said Scavenger.

"More civilians! Take them down!"

Zero starts fighting with the soldiers. "Get him out of here. I'll handle them!" The Avatar looks at Zero in worry. "Don't worry, I'll catch up. Now go!" said Zero to Avatar.

The Avatar nods his head, grabs the scavenger, and grapples away. Zero is dodging enemy laser-fire and he is taking out the soldiers one-by-one. After the Avatar left, The Phantom Terrorist appears in the sky above the battle. He looks down and sees Zero fighting the soldiers.

"So that's the survivor, huh?" He's observing Zero's sword fighting skills. "His fighting skills aren't half bad. Hmm… why does it feel like I've seen this boy before? That fighting style. …Wait! Could he be…"

Zero takes out the last of the soldiers. "Phew! That's the last of them."

Suddenly, he gets a call from one of the Scavengers.

Over Radio. "Hello? Hello? Can anyone hear me?" he asks.

"Yes. This is Zero. Are you okay? Where are you?"

"Zero? Yes. I'm fine. You won't believe who I've ran into."

"Who is it?"

"I've ran into So-"

Out of the blue, Zero is hit by an energy blast and he is sent to one of the trees, causing the communicator to break.

Zero gets up and rubs his head. "Ugh…! Where the heck did that come from?!"

"What do we have here?" The Phantom Terrorist asks.

Zero looks up and sees The Phantom Terrorist flying down. Zero looks at him in horror.

"*Gasps* …It's him. The Phantom Terrorist. Why is he here? Did one of the soldiers contacted him?" Zero thought.

The terrorist lands on the ground as he gazes upon Zero. "I saw what you did back there, boy. You managed to take out a group of armed soldiers by yourself. For a being without any powers, that's quite impressive." He said.

Zero is terrified. "I-I'm shaking. I-I know I shouldn't show fear… but this guy…" Zero thought.

"Relax. I'm not going to kill you. Well, then again, I'm not making any promises. You see, I'm interested in you." said The Phantom Terrorist.

Zero now looks confused. "Interested….in me?" he asks.

"Yes. The way you fight reminds me of someone I once knew. And it feels like I have seen you somewhere before."

"You… know me?"

"I'm not 100% sure. My memories can be quite fuzzy sometimes. Why don't you help me refresh my memory by sparring?" The Terrorist uses the Phantom Ruby's power to materialize a sword. "Shall we?"

"He wants… to fight me? It's no good. If I can't defeat Sonic or Shadow as I am now, what chance do I have against him?" The jackal gets into fighting position but as he is holding his sword, he is still shaking in fear. "Running away would be pointless. So… looks like I have no choice. Sorry, partner (The Avatar). Looks like you're gonna have to lead the survivors now." Zero thought.

"On guard!" Phantom Terrorist shouts.

He charges at Zero and the jackal charges back. The two clashed swords and begins exchanging Zero strikes. The terrorist is fighting like a normal person. He's not using the ruby's power against Zero. Zero dodges one of the Terrorist's attacks by leaping over him. Zero attempts to strike the monster from behind, but the latter turns around, blocks the strike, then kicks the jackal in the stomach, sending him flying to a tree. The terrorist attacks Zero while he's on the ground only for the jackal to jump out of the way. They both continue to exchange attacks with Phantom Terrorist having the slight upper-hand against Zero. They clashed swords one more time then they bounce back from each other. Zero is panting heavily while the terrorist is not tired at all.

"Heh. No doubt about it. It's him." Phantom Terrorist thought.

"What gives? I shouldn't be able to keep up with him. Why is he taking it easy on me?" Zero thought.

"That's enough. Now, I remember you. You're one of Stryker's henchmen." said The Phantom Terrorist.

"Stryker?"

"And you're also Axel's son. Zero, right?"

"Axel? How do you know about them? WHO ARE YOU?!"

"Hmm. Perhaps this will help." The Phantom Terrorist takes off his helmet, revealing his identity to Zero. "Recognize me now?" He asks. His voice is much less deep and chilling now that he's taken off his helmet.

Zero looks at him in shock. "That voice. You're… you're…"

The Phantom Terrorist reveals himself to be Clyde the jackal. "Yes. It's been a while, Zero the jackal." said Clyde.

[End of Ch.4]


	5. Return of Clyde

[Survivor's Den]

20 minutes ago, back in the survivors den, the Scavenger leads Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles to the Survivor's den. He knocks the door and the Rabbit survivor opens the peephole.

"What's the-" The rabbit looks surprised once he sees Sonic. "*Gasps* It can't be! Sonic?!" He shuts the peephole and opens the door. "Guys! It's Sonic!"

The other survivors are shocked. The scavenger and Team Sonic enters the hideout and Sonic greets them.

"Hey guys." said Sonic.

They all stand up and surround Team Sonic in excitement.

" - - Sonic!"

" - - It's really him!"

" - - Hooray!"

"How did you find us?" The other Scavenger asks.

"I was cornered by doom soldiers. Fortunately, they found and saved my life." said The Scavenger.

"We've just shut-down one of Doom's weapon factory and we were heading towards another one here in Westopolis. We've came across him along the way." said Tails.

"I see you're all in good health. We need your help. The Resistance are very low on soldiers. In order to take down The Phantom Terrorist, we need more recruits." said Knuckles.

"We'll gladly join the resistance. Right guys?" said one of the survivors.

Everyone nods in agreement.

"By the way, where's Zero?" The Scavenger asks.

"He and his partner took off to go look for you two. Zero left in a panic, however." Said The cat survivor.

"Oh, then that explains why I've lost connection when I tried contacting him."

"This Zero guy must really care about you all." said Sonic.

"Yes. But he's too protective. He won't let the rest of us help him find more survivors out there." Suddenly there is another knock at the door. "That must be him."

That rabbit opens the peephole. "What's the code?" he asks.

"Freedom." said The person outside.

The rabbit opens the door. The Avatar and the wounded scavenger enters the Den. Team Sonic and The Avatar are surprised to see each other again.

"Buddy?" Sonic and Tails said.

"It's Sonic." Said The last Scavenger.

The Avatar puts the Scavenger down on one of the couches then they approach Team Sonic. The other survivors approach the Scavenger.

"What happened?"

"I got shot while trying to get away from those monsters. Fortunately, Zero and his partner arrived in a knick of time."

Some of the Scavengers gets the First Aid kit and tends to the Scavengers wound.

"It's good to see you again, Rookie." Said Knuckles as he touch fists with the Avatar.

"It's been a while. How've you been?" Sonic asks. Avatar nods their heads.

Looks at the Scavenger. "Is he going to be okay?" Tails asks.

"I'll be fine. Don't worry about me." He said.

To the Avatar. "You went after Zero. Where is he?" The cat survivor asks the Avatar.

"He was holding off the – OW!"

"Sorry."

"He was holding off the soldiers. We had to leave him behind for his partner to help me escape. Those guys are easy to him, so he should be back any minute now."

"Before we got here, I contacted him to let him know that I'm okay and I've found Sonic. But the signal got disrupted when I was about to tell him. He sounded like he was finished fighting with the soldiers."

"Okay, then. We'll just wait till he gets back. I'm dying to meet this guy." Said Sonic.

The Avatar looks a little worried about Zero.

* * *

[Woods]

Meanwhile back in the woods, Zero looks stunned to see that Clyde is still alive and he is the Phantom Terrorist.

"Hahah. What's wrong, boy? You look like you've seen a ghost." said Clyde.

"Clyde the jackal. You're still alive?" Zero asks.

"Alive and better than ever, my friend." said Clyde.

"If he's still alive, then that means… Stryker lost?" Zero thought. "How did you manage to escape? And how on earth did you get your hands on the Phantom Ruby?"

"So, you know about this stone as well, huh? Well, since you asked - I'll gladly tell you. Minutes after my battle with Stryker, I was injured to the point where I was unable to stand up. Before you and your squad came to my mansion, I've rigged the place with explosions as a backup plan to destroy you all.

* * *

[Burning Hallway, lower floor]

4 years earlier, after the explosions went off inside Clyde's mansion, Clyde is seen lying down injured to the point where he's unable to stand up and he is losing conscious. The side-stripped jackal is stunned to see that he and Stryker are still alive and the house isn't completely destroyed.

"Ugh… W-What? ….We're… still alive? B-But… how?" Clyde thought.

Suddenly, Stryker the jackal appears, grabs Clyde's neck, and starts choking him.

Angry. "YOU…! What have you done? WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" said Stryker.

Clyde is trying to move, but after falling out of the window, he is paralyzed from the waist down, and he is too wounded to defend himself. All he can do now is accept his death at the hands of his Arch-enemy. But then…

"Boss!"

Stryker looks at his right direction and sees a couple of Clyde's henchmen charging at him. It was too late for Stryker to dodge and the henchmen tackles him. The henchmen gets up and starts beating on Stryker. A third henchmen appears and helps Clyde.

"Boss? Boss!" said Henchmen #3.

"S-Scatter?" said the injured Clyde.

Scatter looks at the other henchmen. "Ice. Stone. The boss is injured. We need to get him out of here, NOW!"

Ice and Stone stops beating on Stryker. "But what about this guy?" they both ask.

"Leave him! Come on, let's get out of here!"

Ice and Stone leaves Stryker and helps Scatter pick up Clyde. The three jackals runs away while holding their boss while Stryker is left on the floor, trying to get back up.

* * *

[Garage]

The jackals makes it to the 10 car garage. All of them are sports cars. 5 cars has been destroyed by burning woods that fell from the ceiling. 5 cars remain intact.

"COME ON! HURRY, HURRY, HURRY!" Scatter shouts.

They got in a red sports car. Scatter is driving, Ice is in the front seat, while Stone sits with Clyde in the back. Scatter starts the car.

"STEP ON IT, SCATTER!" said Ice.

Scatter stomps on the gas pedal and drives out of the garage.

[Desert, night]

The jackals are driving out in the desert at top speed. Clyde is slowly losing conscious.

"Boss! Hang in there, Boss! The boss is losing it." said Stone.

"What do we do? Where do we go?!" Ice asks.

"We gotta go to Silvertown." said Stone.

"Are you stupid?! If we go there, the Mayor will have us arrested!" said Scatter.

"Well, where else can we go?!" Stone asks.

"To another city."

"There are other cities out in the desert?!"

"There has to be!"

As their conversation continues, Clyde passes out.

* * *

[Grey City Hospital, Clyde's Room]

4 years later, 10 days after the events of Sonic Forces, Clyde slowly starts to regain consciousness.

"Ugh… Huh…? Where am I?" When his vision becomes clear, he sees that he is inside a hospital room. "A hospital?" He looks around. He sees that it's daylight outside the window and he is laying in the hospital bed. Clyde is wearing a patient uniform, he has bandages wrapped around his head, he has an ivy and heart rate monitor cord attached to his arm, and his muscles have been deteriorated. "How did I get here?"

Suddenly, a doctor enters the room. The doctor is a male coyote wearing a white doctors uniform and he is holding a checkboard.

"Ah. Why hello there, Mr. Jackal. I see that you're finally awake." Said the doctor.

Clyde looks at the doctor in confusion. "Who – Who are you?" Clyde asks.

"My name is doctor Wesley. Do you know where you are and how you got here?"

Clyde is trying to remember. "Um… I…I can't remember. How did I get here?"

"Your three friends brought you here. You were in a terrible accident that caused you to suffer a fracture to the back of your skull. And you have a spinal injury. By the time you got here, you were unconscious. You should regain your memories soon."

Clyde sits up. He places his hand on the back of his head and groans in pain. "My head. How long was I out?"

"Well, you're not going to believe it, but you were in a coma for four years."

Clyde looks at the doctor in surprise. "4 YEARS?! You must be joking!"

"I assure you, I'm not."

"4 years? No way. That can't be! You said that my friends brought me here?"

"Yes."

"Well, where are they?"

"They come visit you once every three weeks. We'll call them to let them know that you're awake."

"I can't feel my legs."

"The injury left you completely paralyzed from the waist down. I'm afraid that we don't know when you will ever walk again."

"So you're saying that I could be crippled for life?"

"It's possible. I'll be right back. I must check on another patient. I'll let the nurse come in to give you medicine for your headache."

The doctor leaves the room. Clyde looks at himself in disbelief that he has been in a coma for so long. "My body. I was really out… for 4 years?" Clyde is trying to remember what had happened to him 4 years ago, but he couldn't at the moment. "Darn. I can't remember. Maybe these "friends" of mine can tell me what happened."

* * *

[Grey City Hospital, Front Entrance]

Later, three of Clyde's henchmen, Stone, Ice, and Scatter enters the hospital. Stone is 4'5 tall. He is the tallest and the most muscular henchmen. He is a side-stripped jackal like Clyde and the other two. He is wearing a black shirt and blue jeans. Scatter is another one of Clyde's henchmen who is 4'3 tall. He is taller than Ice but shorter than Stone. He is wearing a light blue long-sleeved shirt and blue jeans. Ice is the shortest henchmen of the group with the height of 4'1 cm tall. He is wearing red with white-striped shirt and he is wearing dark-blue jeans. The trio approaches the front desk.

"Hello. We're hear to visit a patient named, Clyde the jackal." said Scatter.

"Yes, sir. The doctor will call you at any moment." Said the front clerk.

The three men sits down at the waiting area.

"The boss is finally awake." said Ice.

"I can't wait. Things just aren't the same without him." said Stone.

"Remember, you two. The boss is still recovering from his head injury. So he won't remember who we really are to him till he gets his memory back. When we get to him, we must explain who we are, what happened, and why he is here." said Scatter.

"Got it." said Stone and Ice.

20 minutes later, the doctor calls the henchmen.

"Visitors for Clyde the jackal?" The doctor shouts.

"That's us. Come on." said Scatter.

They all stand up and follows the doctor to Clyde's room.

* * *

[Grey City Hospital, Clyde's Room]

The doctor opens the door and sees Clyde looking out of the window.

"Mr. Jackal. Your visitors are here." Clyde turns around and looks at the doctor as he lets Ice, Stone, and Scatter in the room. "I'll leave you all alone for awhile now. I'll be back later."

The doctor leaves the room again.

"Hey, Clyde. Long time no see." said Ice.

"So, you three are my friends?" Clyde asks.

"Well, we're actually your henchmen. We told the staff that you're our friend." said Scatter.

"Henchmen?"

"Yes. My name is Scatter the jackal. The tall guy right here is Stone, and the small one here is Ice. We've been working for you since you helped us bust out of a prison in a city called, Grand Metropolis. Afterwards, we settled down in a desert city called, Silvertown, and we have been helping you build your own criminal network for many years." Said Scatter.

"Well what happened? How'd I get here?"

* * *

[Clyde's Mansion, lower floor]

In a flashback, Scatter, Ice, and Stone encounters Brawn the jackal; the strongest member of the jackal squad.

"We were all at war with your arch enemy's squad inside the mansion. When we were about to face off with one of his men," The bombs went off before they were about to fight Brawn. "the house exploded." Parts of ceiling collapsed on the jackals.

* * *

[Burning hallway]

After the explosions went off, Brawn gets out of the rubble then he runs off to go find the other members of the jackal squad. After he left, Stone, Ice, and Scatter comes out of the rubble as well. They look around and sees that the house is on fire.

"What the – What's happening?!" Ice asks.

"I don't know! But we need to get out of here!" said Scatter.

The trio runs off to find an exit.

"We were trying to find a way out of the house before it completely collapse." While they are running, they encountered Stryker choking Clyde. "Along the way, we saw that the enemies' leader was about to kill you."

"Boss!" Ice and Stone said. The two jackals charged at Stryker.

* * *

[Grey City, Night]

The jackals drove all the way to Grey City and they parked in the Grey City hospital's parking lot. "It took hours, but we manage to find Grey City and took you to the hospital. You passed out the entire time, but we're lucky that you're still alive."

* * *

[Grey City Hospital, Clyde's Room]

Flashback ends.

"For the past 4 years, we've settled down and got jobs in this city in order to pay for your hospital insurance. Stone works as a construction worker, Ice works in a restaurant, and I work in a car wash." said Scatter.

"And we come to visit you once every three weeks when we're off work." said Stone.

"You've done all of that for me? Why? Why didn't you all just leave and live your own lives?" Clyde asks.

"Life just isn't the same without you. We're with you until the end, Boss." Said Ice.

Clyde smiles at them. "I appreciate it. Really I do. Do you know how long I have to stay here?"

"We asked the doc while he was taking us to you. They said that you need stay here and recover for at least another month. By the time you leave, your head injury should get better, you'll get your memories back, and we'll be able to start over then go back to the way things were." said Ice.

"Hmph. Very well then."

* * *

[Grey City, day]

1 month has passed. Clyde has gotten his memories back and he is healed enough to leave the hospital. However, he still has his spinal injury so he now has to be in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Stone is guiding Clyde while Ice and Scatter follows them to the car.

"Are you sure you don't want to start here in Grey City, boss?" Stone asks.

"Yes, I'm sure. Now let's get outta here." said Clyde.

Stone lifts Clyde and puts him in the front seat. Scatter is driving while Sone and Ice are sitting in the backseat. Scatter starts the car and drives away.

* * *

[Desert, day]

Clyde and his henchmen has left Grey City. They are now driving out in the desert.

"Ice. You have the map, right?" Clyde asks.

"Yes, boss." Takes out the map. "Lets see. There is another town called, Tombstoneville. Judging by the name, it must be located in the rocky area in the desert."

"How big is it compared to Silvertown?" Clyde asks.

"Well it's not quite as big but it looks like it's larger than Grey City."

"Are there any more cities out here?"

"Well there are places called, Dry Valley, Hurricane Village, and Sand city. Dry Valley and Stone City looks to be at least as big as Grey City. But Hurricane Village is the smallest city of the rest."

"Hmm… guess we'll start at Tombstoneville. Since I can no longer return to Silvertown. By the way, you said you've saved me from being killed by Stryker, right?"

"Yep. And we sure gave him a heck of a beating." said Stone.

"Then you killed him, right?"

"Uh…" said Stone.

"Um, well…" said Ice.

"Not exactly." said Scatter.

"You let him live?!"

"You said that _you_ wanted to kill him." said Stone.

"IMBECILE! How could I be able to kill him at that moment when I was too injured to fight back?!"

"Sorry, boss." All three of them said.

"I don't want your apologies!"

"Well… there could be a chance that he and his squad died when the house collapsed." said Scatter.

"Yeah, well here's the thing, Scatter; we don't know if they're dead! They could've found Stryker, escaped, healed him, and they could still be alive." He sighs and looks out the window. "Well if they're alive, then we'll have to leave them be. I'm in no position to ever have a rematch with them anyway. Crippled for life. How could things get any worse?"

Suddenly, the car bumps into something that was strong enough to blow out one of the front tires. The gang starts screaming as the car is spinning around in circles. The car finally stops spinning.

"Ugh." Scatter groans and rubs his head.

"Ow! What the heck, Scatter?!" said Ice.

"What happened?!" Stone asks.

"I don't know, I'll go check it out." Scatter exits the vehicle to see what happened. He looks at the wheel and sees that whatever it was he hit has busted the tire. "This is not good."

"Well?" said Clyde.

"The tire is busted." said Scatter.

"Busted? How?!" Clyde asks.

"Did you hit a rock or a hole in the road?" Ice asks.

"Not sure." said Scatter. He walks off to see what he ran into.

"Great! The tire is busted." said Ice.

"Looks like we'll have to walk and hopefully someone will come-by and give us a ride." said Stone.

"Not a lot of people drive out here in the desert, so it's going to take a while." said Ice.

Clyde looks very upset. "Someone shoot me." He said.

Meanwhile with Scatter, the jackal gazes upon the object he ran over. It is a magenta icosahedron gem with black ripple patterns. That object is the Phantom Ruby.

"Whoa, what kind of rock is this?" Scatter turns around calls Clyde and the others. "HEY, GUYS! I HIT SOMEKIND OF ROCK! COME CHECK IT OUT!"

Stone and Ice gets out of the car. Ice gets the wheelchair out of the trunk while Stone gets Clyde out of the car. He sits Clyde down on the chair then they walked over to Scatter. All of them looks down at the Phantom Ruby.

"What is this?" Ice asks.

"Whatever it is, I bet it's worth a fortune!" said Stone.

Clyde bends down and picks up the Phantom Ruby. When he touches it, the ruby activates then creates an illusion of a ruined world that is control by some kind of military organization. The jackals looks around, wondering what happened and where they are.

"WHOA! WHAT HAPPENED?!" said Stone.

"Where the heck are we?!" said Scatter.

Clyde looks at the illusion with pure shock. "It can't be." The illusion fades away after Clyde drops the ruby. "What the – Wait!"

"It's gone! What was that?!" Ice asks.

Clyde picks the ruby back up and gazes upon it. "That was my dream. What is this thing?" The Phantom Ruby activates again and circles an aura around Clyde. "Huh?! What the- AUUUUUUUUGH!"

"Boss!" Ice, Stone, and Scatter screamed.

Eventually, the aura fades away and Clyde looks unharmed. The jackal starts to feel the lower half of his body. "Huh? I can feel my legs." Clyde can now move legs again and his henchmen looks surprised.

"Boss. Your legs." said Stone.

"No way!" said Ice.

Clyde gets off the wheelchair and he is standing up. "Impossible." He takes another look at the Phantom Ruby. "This stone. Not only did it bring up that illusion, it also healed my injury." He smirks and chuckles evilly. "This is amazing."

Suddenly, Classic Eggman appears and he points a laser gun at Clyde and his men. "Hey! You four!" The jackals turns around and sees Classic Eggman. They looked surprised that they're being held gun-point by the evil scientist. "I believe you have something that belongs to me."

"Who are you?" Clyde asks.

"I am Dr. Eggman, the greatest scientific genius in the world. That gem you have in your hand is mine! I've been searching everywhere for it. Now hand it over!" said Classic Eggman.

"Okay, wise guy. If this is your gem, then why is it on the road?" Scatter asks.

"I don't have to answer any questions from the likes of you. Just hand over the gem right now or I'll blast you into nothing but ashes." said Classic Eggman.

Clyde smiles after coming up with an idea. "My apologies." Scatter, Stone, and Ice looks at Clyde in confusion. "Our vehicle stopped on us and we saw this stone while we were hitch hiking. We had no idea that it belongs to someone."

"I don't care what you were doing when you found it. Just hand it over or else!"

Clyde looks at Stone, signaling him for what he's about to do. "Okay, catch!" Clyde tosses the Phantom Ruby at Classic Eggman.

"Wait – D'Oh!" Classic Eggman drops the laser to catch the ruby. He manage to catch it using both of his hands and looks at it. "Ha-ha! The gem of nightmares is mine again. Now, I can go back to my-" While Classic Eggman is distracted, Stone punches him in the face. The punch was powerful enough to knock Classic Eggman unconscious.

"Good work, Stone." said Clyde.

"Thank you, boss." said Stone.

Clyde walks up to Classic Eggman and picks up the Phantom Ruby. "Sorry. But it's mine now."

"What should we do now, boss?" Ice asks.

"This guy knows about this stone. I have a lot of questions for him about it. If only there was an empty warehouse nearby. That way, I can have a place to interrogate him." Suddenly, the Phantom Ruby activates again and materializes a small white warehouse placed outside of the road. "Well, speak of the devil."

* * *

[Warehouse]

Inside the warehouse, Classic Eggman is tied up in a chair and a brown bag is covering his head. Classic Eggman starts waking up.

"Ugh…. H-huh?" The jackals removes the bag off of Classic Eggman. "W-Where am I?" When his visions becomes clear, he sees the three side-striped jackals surrounding him. "You Three!?" He tries to get up but he realizes that he is tied to a chair. "What is the meaning of this?" Trying to break free. "UNTIE ME NOW!"

"It's about time you woke up." said Clyde.

"Huh?"

Clyde walks towards Classic Eggman from the shadows. "Now we can get down to business."

"You?! How dare you do this to ME?! If you don't unite me this instant, I'll make you regret it!"

"Hahah… Sure you will. Now…" Clyde reaches his pocket and takes out the Phantom Ruby. Classic Eggman looks at Clyde with wide-eyes. "You seem to know a lot about this stone. Tell me everything."

"How dare you!? I'm not telling _you_ anything!" Clyde kicks Classic Eggman in the stomach, knocking him on his back while still being tied up. "Argh!" Clyde then takes out Classic Eggman's laser gun, stomps on his stomach, causing him to vomit, then he points the laser at his face.

"I have a lot of ways to make you talk, doctor. And I have no issue with causing excruciating pain upon you to get that information. Now, if you want to make this easy for you, I suggest you start talking now." said Clyde.

"Curse you!" said Classic Eggman.

"Okay then." Clyde points the laser at Eggman's right shoulder then pulls the trigger. Classic Eggman screams in agony. "Now talk or I'll shoot off your legs."

"Alright, alright, alright! I'll talk! I'll talk! It is an ancient gemstone that has the power to grant the user limitless amounts of energy. It also has the power to create illusions based upon the person's visual and depth perception to feed false information to their brains, creating a whole new world for them. It's power is so extraordinary, that it can even grant the user the power to warp reality and control the time-space continuum."

"How can a gemstone with such power exist in this world? Where did it come from?" Clyde asks.

"According to the information I've found about it, the gem of nightmares is an ancient gemstone that has existed for thousands of years."

* * *

[Desert, day]

5,000 years earlier. There was a mysterious man who is traveling out on his own in the desert. The man is caught in the middle of a sand storm and he is trying to keep walking through it. Classic Eggman narrates the origin story of the Phantom Ruby.

"5,000 years ago, there was a man who was traveling out in the desert. His name was Elizah the coyote, he was the first being to ever wield the gemstones power. Elizah embarked on a journey to find someone who can help him raise money for his poor village."

Eventually, the sand storm clears and Elizah has discovered a purple pyramid.

"One day, he has discovered a pyramid that looks different from the others. It was a pyramid that was smaller than the rest and it's color was purple."

He goes inside the pyramid. Inside, the stone walls were purple and descriptions on the walls are glowing with the color white.

"Inside, the walls were written with unknown words and walls were completely purple. There was no traps, no deadly creatures, no sealed doors, or any kind of hazardous things inside the pyramid. It's like whoever created the gemstone's placeholder, wanted it to be discovered."

Elizah eventually found the Phantom Ruby sitting in it's alter. He walks over to it and picks it up. When he touches the ruby, it brings up an illusion of a village full of happy and healthy people.

"Once the coyote touched the gemstone, it created an illusion of what he desired the most. Helping his village."

* * *

[Village]

Back in the village, Elizah used the Phantom Ruby's power to save his village. The people are praising him for his good deed.

"The coyote took the Gemstone and used it's power to save his village. After doing so, everyone started to praise him like he was a god. They've built statues and shrines of his honor. Things were going well for him, until…"

* * *

[Egypt]

Some time later, Elizah uses the Phantom Ruby's power to travel to Egypt and overthrown the king. He became the new ruler over the country. He is standing on the balcony of his castle and he watches over Egypt. He created a necklace with the Phantom Ruby placed on it and it's wrapped around his neck.

"After all the praise and worship he got from his home, he was starting to go mad with power. He wanted to see if he can get more praise from more people other than his village. So he left, traveled to Egypt, and uses the Gemstone to overthrown the king of Egypt and he became the new ruler. For many years, Elizah ruled Egypt with an iron fist, he gained followers, and he became Egypt's most powerful ruler.

* * *

[Castle]

Elizah is laying down on the castle floor with a cup of wine spilled right next to him. Then a male golden jackal wearing a uniform picks up the Phantom Ruby and takes it off the chain.

"Elizah's tyranny came to an end when he was assassinated from a poisoned drink. The assassin was one of his own servants. Before the guards find the body, the assassin takes the gemstone and uses it to flee from Egypt."

* * *

[Angel Island]

The assassin appeared on Angel Island. This takes place 1,000 years before the Echidna clan came about and the island was still in the sea. While on the island, the assassin is seen burying the Phantom Ruby.

"The assassin teleported to an island called, Angel Island. In order to prevent it from getting into the wrong hands, he buried the gemstone underground so no one could ever find it."

* * *

[Angel Island, Present day]

Classic Eggman appears on Angel Island in his Egg mobile. He then takes out a small robot with a drill attached to it's nose. He activates the robot and uses it to drill underground to find the Phantom Ruby. He monitors the robot from a small display monitor that's build on the Egg mobile's control pad.

"In the present day, after I found out about the gemstone's existence, I flew to the island to find it so I can use it for my ultimate plan. I've created a small drill robot to locate the spot where the gem was buried on. When my robot found the stone, it activated and caused a dimensional breach in the atmosphere."

* * *

[Warehouse]

Flashback ends.

"I've had a lot of unfortunate problems with trying use the gemstone to achieve my goal. And I was warped into this dimension. I've been tracking down the gemstone for days so I can use it to go back to my world."

"You're from another dimension, huh?" Clyde asks.

"Yes."

"Interesting. Do you know who could have created this stone?"

"I'm not sure. It's creation is shrouded in mystery. But I can assume that it was created for the purpose to bring darkness and chaos. I assumed that because I figured out that once the user wields the gemstone's power, they change into a more darker version of themselves. Even if their intentions are to use the gem for good at first, the user still has the chance of becoming corrupted."

"That's some freaky stuff." said Ice.

"You ain't kidding." said Scatter.

"There! I told you everything I know. Now, I need that stone to get back to my world. So untie me and hand it over!" said Classic Eggman.

"Hmm… nah. I think I'll keep it." said Clyde.

"What!?" said Classic Eggman.

"With the power of this ruby, I can finally make my dream come true."

"Who are you?" Classic Eggman asks.

"Name's Clyde. Clyde the jackal. You said that you're "the greatest scientific genius in the world", right? Well then, I want you to fuse this gem of nightmares into my body."

"What?! But why?"

"That way I won't have to hold this thing all the time and nobody can be able to take it from me. You can do that, right?"

"Even if I can do that, I don't have the equipment. All of my lab equipment is back in my dimension."

"Well, do you think there is another Eggman in this dimension?" Scatter asks.

"Well, yes. I've met him before, but I have no idea where he is."

"Can you give us a possible location of where he could be?" Clyde asks.

"Well, there is one location in mind. There is an island called, South Island. In my world, I have a lab somewhere on that island. There's no guarantee, but the Dr. Eggman of this world should have a lab on that island as well."

"Thanks for the info, doctor." Looks at Stone. "Grab him. We're taking him with us!"

Stone does what Clyde says and picks up Classic Eggman. "Hey! Put me down, you brute!" Classic Eggman is trying to free himself but to no avail.

"How are we going to find this island, boss?" Ice asks.

"This Eggman will tell us where it is and what it looks like along the way. Now, come on, let's get out of here."

Clyde and his henchmen leaves the warehouse with Classic Eggman tagging along with them against his will. They all are going off to South island's Green hill zone.

* * *

[Green Hill, day]

On South island, Clyde, Classic Eggman, and his gang have arrived in green hill. Classic Eggman stops trying to escape and accepts that he's not going anywhere while the jackals looks around the island in Awe. Green hill has returned back to normal after the fall of the Eggman Empire.

"Wow, this island is beautiful." said Stone.

"You're telling me. Why stay in a desert, when we can live here for now on?" Scatter asks.

"We're not here for sight seeing boys, we have another Eggman to track down." said Clyde.

"We know, boss, but still – this place is awesome." said Ice.

Looks at Classic Eggman. "Hey, doctor, where was your lab located on this island in your world?" Clyde asks.

"I've set it up on a platform next to the end of the waterfall. By the way, I should warn you, the Eggman of this world is a lot more stubborn than I am. Even if you find him, I doubt you're going to make him do whatever you say so easily."

"Oh, he's going to do it alright." said Clyde.

Suddenly, they encounter one of Eggman's robots. The moto bug. The robot stops the jackals and prepares to attack them.

"What is that?" Stone asks.

"That's one of my – well, technically, the Eggman of this world's robots!" said Classic Eggman.

The moto bug charges at them. Clyde uses the Phantom Ruby to destroy the robot.

"Useless piece of junk." said Clyde.

"Wait! I have an idea on how we can track down your Eggman." said Classic Eggman.

"What is it?" Clyde asks.

"There is no guarantee that he's on this island, but I can create a device that can help us track him down. All you need to do is destroy enough robots on this island so I can use it's parts to create the device. If I acquire the machines' data and place it in the device, I should be able to find the place where they were created."

Clyde is unsure if Classic Eggman can be trusted. He gives some thought on whether he should follow along with Eggman's idea. "Hmm… very well. We'll do that. But…we'll be keeping an eye on you when you start building. If you try anything funny: I'll make you suffer. Got it?"

"Yes, I understand." said Eggman.

The jackals are exploring the entire island; They are hunting down and destroying robots they come across and collecting their parts. From moto bugs, buzz bombers, crab meats, newtrons, choppers, etcetera, etcetera.

"Alright that should be enough. Now, put me down and untie me." said Classic Eggman.

"Do it." said Clyde to Stone. Stone puts Classic Eggman down and unties him. Clyde, Ice, and Scatter puts down the parts in front of Classic Eggman. "Now, get to work!"

"Okay, don't rush me!"

While Classic Eggman is building the device, Stone and Clyde are watching him while Ice and Scatter are sitting up against a palm tree. It takes a while, but Classic Eggman is finally finished with the tracking device.

"Phew, it's finished." said Eggman.

"About time." said Clyde.

Using the parts from the robots, Classic Eggman built a device that looks similar to Tails' Miles Electric Device. He activates the device and it brings up a description of where the robots were build. Scatter and Ice wakes up and walks up to Clyde, Stone, and Classic Eggman.

"Okay there are two possible locations where he could be. There is a laboratory inside a pyramid located back in the desert and the other one is located in a place called, Mystic Jungle."

"Seriously?! We just left the desert!" said Ice.

"Hush." Said Clyde to Ice. "So two locations, huh? We'll start looking in Mystic Jungle."

"Very well." Classic Eggman sets the tracking to Mystic Jungle.

"Good. Stone, tie him back up, we're going to Mystic Jungle." said Clyde.

* * *

[Mystic Jungle – Eggman's Laboratory]

In his lab, Modern Eggman, Orbot, and Cubot enters the lab. Eggman looks tired as he is sweating and panting heavily.

"Phew. Now the lab is finally repaired." Said Eggman. Modern Eggman walks up to his computer. "Now then. I need to come up with better security that way someone like Shadow won't be able to destroy the facility."

"Might I suggest that you build some kind of defense system for the robots." said Orbot.

"Like what?" Eggman asks.

"Like barriers. Sonic and his friends always destroys your robots so easily because they lack proper defense, sir. Maybe if the robots are equipped with sensors that tracks incoming enemy attacks, the barriers automatically turn on, and it can eliminate it's target once their at close range."

"Hmm… that's not a half-bad idea."

"Oh! Oh! I know! I know! How about large robots armed with Gatling lasers?" Orbot suggests.

"No. Sonic can easily dodge the laser and destroy the robot." said Eggman.

"What about giant robots with big hammers?" Orbot suggests.

"Tried that." said Eggman.

"How about Robots that can copy your data?" Orbot suggests.

"Absolutely not! The last time I've built a robot that can do that, it ended up turning on me. I do not want to risk repeating the same mistake."

"Well, that's all I got." said Orbot.

Suddenly, a big purple portal appears inside the lab. Eggman and his two robot assistants, turned around and looks at the portal in surprise.

"WHAT THE?!" said Eggman.

Clyde, Classic Eggman, and his henchmen comes out of the portal. The portal closes behind them.

"Heh. I'm starting to get used to this power." said Clyde.

"Who are you?!" Modern Eggman notices The Phantom Ruby. "The Phantom Ruby?!"

Looks at Eggman. "So you're Eggman of this world?" Clyde asks. The jackal uses the Phantom Ruby to trap Modern Eggman inside a barrier. Orbot and Cubot are shocked and terrified of what's happening.

"What the- Hey! LET ME OUT OF HERE!" said Eggman as he is banging on the barrier.

"Relax, doctor, I've just come for a favor." said Clyde.

Stone throws Classic Eggman to Modern Eggman. Modern Eggman is surprised to see his Classic counterpart.

"It's you! What are you doing here? Who are these people?!" Modern Eggman asks.

"It's a long story." said Classic Eggman.

Orbot and Cubot are shocked to see that there is another Eggman.

"Two bosses?" Cubot asks.

"But how?" said Orbot.

"Now that we've finally found you, we can get down to business. My name is Clyde the jackal." Walks up to Modern Eggman. "And I've come here for a favor regarding this stone."

"The Phantom Ruby! But how? I thought it was destroyed!" said Modern Eggman.

"Wait? You know this stone?" Clyde asks.

"Phantom Ruby? You mean you've used this gemstone before?" Classic Eggman asks.

"Yes. 7 months ago, I've found the Phantom Ruby and used it to conquer the world. But I was defeated by Sonic and his annoying friends." said Modern Eggman.

"So you called it, The Phantom Ruby, eh? I thought Gem of nightmares is a perfect name."

"Gem of nightmares? What kind of ridiculous name is that?"

"What? It's a gemstone that can create dreams become a reality and it's been used for evil. So that's why I called it that."

"The Phantom Ruby is a better name for it."

"How?"

"It just sounds better, that's how."

"But Gem of nightmares is a much more fitting name for it."

"No. Phantom Ruby is."

Clyde and his henchmen looks very annoyed at the unnecessary argument Classic and Modern Eggman are having.

"Gem of nightmares!"

"Phantom Ruby!"

"Gem of nightmares!"

"Phantom Ruby!"

"Gem of nightmares!"

"Phantom Ruby!"

"Gem of nightmares!"

Clyde starts growling and grits his sharp teeth in irritation.

"Phantom Ruby!"

"Gem of nightmares!"

"Phantom Ruby!"

"Gem of nightmares!"

"PHANTOM RUBY!"

"GEM OF NIGHTMARES!"

Clyde has had enough. "SHUT UUUUUUUP!" he screams. Classic and Modern Eggman stops arguing and looks at Clyde. "I don't care what you idiots call it! Just shut up and listen to what I have to say!"

"Ok." Classic and Modern Eggman said.

"Now, as I was saying. Regarding this gemstone, I want to fuse it into my body so I can have all of it's power in my possession. Can you do that?"

Modern Eggman laughs.

"Yes, I can do that. But I'm not going to do it. Why should I fuse the Phantom Ruby with someone like you?" Modern Eggman asks.

"I figured you would refuse." Looks at Stone, Ice, and Scatter. "Ear plugs, on!" The jackals takes out ear plugs and puts them in their ears. Modern and Classic Eggman are wondering what they're doing.

"What are you doing?" Modern Eggman asks.

"You'll see." said Clyde.

Clyde puts on his ear plugs then uses the Phantom Ruby to summon four chipmunks. Two are inside Modern Eggman's barrier and two more are placed right next to Classic Eggman. The four chipmunks are replicas of Chester Chipmunk aka "Chatterbox" from Memories of Infinite's Past.

"Hello." All Chesters said. Modern and Classic Eggman bursts out laughing.

"Bwa-hahahahah! Chipmunks?" said Modern Eggman.

"Oooooh! I'm terrified!" said Classic Eggman.

The chipmunks starts talking.

"Hi. We're Chester the chipmunk, but Clyde and the others call us, Chatterbox."

They all are talking at the same time.

"Anyway, you won't believe what dream we had. We were in an amusement park having a great time riding the roller coasters, playing games, and we ate delicious food. But then the sky turned purple and we all start floating in the air, and then-" For those who haven't got the chance to read 'Memories of Infinite's past', Chatterbox is a chipmunk with a very irritating high-pitched voice, and he is capable of talking for hours without stopping to breathe. "up in the air, the clouds start turning into cotton candy – I know – crazy right? Then we saw cows and bulls floating along with us. And then-" Modern and Classic Eggman are starting to lose their minds as the Chatterboxs' keeps talking.

Modern Eggman decides to kick one of them. "Shut up!" Eggman kicks him but they all have intangibility. "What?!"

"Then we went off into this strange new world in the clouds. There were lots of animals there playing on the clouds and we decided to join them-"

The Eggman's starts screaming. "**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!"**

Modern Eggman covers his ears but since he is inside the shield with the chipmunks, he can still hear them. He tried kicking them again but it's useless. "Silence! I said, silence!" Since Classic Eggman is tied up, he can't cover his ears and he can't stand back up off the floor because his large body is making it difficult for him to get up without using his hands.

"SHUT UP! SHUT UUUUUP!" Classic Eggman screams.

Despite the Eggman's demands, the chipmunks are still talking. Clyde and his men are resting on the floor with their backs up against one of Eggman's lab tubes. Since they have earplugs on, they can't hear the chipmunk's talking and the Eggmans' screams. Modern Eggman gets down on his knees and looks at Orbot and Cubot.

"Orbot! Cubot! Don't stand there, do something!" said Modern Eggman.

The two robots couldn't stand the chipmunks either. Orbot curled up to a ball and Cubot turned into a cube. It seems like they can't hear Eggman for some reason. Classic Eggman looks at Clyde and begs him.

"MAKE THEM STOP! PLEASE! MAKE THEM STOP!" Classic Eggman yells.

They couldn't hear them.

2 hours later. The chipmunks are _still_ talking. Modern and Classic Eggman are suffering psychological pain from the sheer annoyance from the chipmunks. Clyde looks at his watch then he stands up.

"Alright, that's enough." said Clyde.

Clyde uses the Phantom Ruby to make the chipmunks disappear. Modern and Classic Eggman are now in relief.

"Good ol' Chatterbox. The perfect animal to drive anyone insane. Now, are you going to do what I ask or should I bring them back."

"- -No – No! No! Okay, Okay, we'll do it! We'll do it!" said Modern Eggman.

"- -Please no! Please no! Okay! We'll do it!" said Classic Eggman.

"Good." said Clyde.

"Before we begin, what do you plan on using the Phantom Ruby for?" Modern Eggman asks.

"With this ruby, I can make my childhood dream come true. I can finally build my own terrorist organization on a global scale, and the world will be mine."

"You want to conquer the world, too?" Modern Eggman asks. Eggman then grins evilly. "Well, why didn't you say so? We both have the same goal, Mr. Clyde. How about we join forces? We can conquer the world, together."

"No thanks." said Clyde.

"What?" said Modern Eggman.

"We're not interested in partnering up with anyone. Now, get to work or else."

Modern Eggman clenches his teeth in anger. "Fine. Just get me out of this barrier!"

* * *

[Dr. Eggman's laboratory]

Some time later, Clyde is inside one of Eggman's capsules. Scatter, Iron, and Stone are watching the Eggmans as they are typing on the computer. On the monitor, it shows a pixelated screenshot of Clyde and Phantom Ruby attached to his chest. Classic Eggman looks at screenshot then he turns to Modern Eggman to ask him a question.

"So, you've done this before?" Classic Eggman asks.

"Yes. There was once a jackal named, Infinite. I've made a prototype of the Phantom Ruby and attached it onto his body. He helped me defeat Sonic and conquer the world at first, but because of his arrogance, Sonic came back and defeated me once again." said Modern Eggman.

"Must've been terrible."

"Oh, you have no idea."

"What happened to this "Infinite"?"

"I kicked him out."

"May I ask another question? Did the Sonic of my dimension traveled here along with the g- well, Phantom Ruby?"

"Yes. How did he-"

Scatter interrupts their conversation. "Hey!"

They both turned around and looks at Scatter. "What?" both said.

"I hate to interrupt your conversation, but… who's Sonic?

Both Eggmans are shocked to know that Scatter doesn't know who Sonic is.

"Wait! You all never heard of Sonic the Hedgehog?" Modern Eggman asks. All three shakes their heads in no. "Fastest creature in the universe?"

"Savior of the earth?" Classic Eggman asks.

"Nope." said Stone.

"Don't ring a bell." said Scatter.

"Nuh-uh." said Ice.

"First, Infinite, now these guys? Seriously, have these jackals been living in caves?" Modern Eggman thought.

The computer starts ringing. "Experimentation, complete. Phantom Ruby merged to life-form, successful." It said.

The capsule drains all the water out and opens the door. Clyde comes out of the capsule. All three jackals approaches him.

"Boss. How do you feel?" Ice asks.

Clyde chuckles as the ruby starts building purple aura around him. He then spreads both of his arms out, releasing more energy strong enough to shake the lab. The jackals and both Eggmans loses their footings and falls on the floor. The lab stops shaking and the aura forms back into Clyde. The jackal laughs in amusement.

"Magnificent!" said Clyde.

"It worked. Boss, it worked!" said Stone.

"Amazing. His power might be even greater than Infinite's." Modern Eggman thought.

"Now we can rebuild the organization!" said Scatter.

"And nobody is going to stop us!" said Ice.

"Us? Hmm…yeah about that." Clyde traps Scatter, Ice, and Stone in the Phantom Ruby's energy.

"Huh?!" said Stone.

"What the?!" said Ice.

"Boss, what are you- Whoa!"

Clyde uses levitation to lift his henchmen up in the air. "No that this ruby is apart of me, I don't need you three anymore."

Scatter, Ice, and Stone are all terrified and confused.

"Wh-What are you doing?!" Stone asks in a panicky tone.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm taking out the trash." said Clyde.

"B-But boss, we've done everything for you!" said Ice.

"We've been working for the past 4 years so we can get the money for your recovery. We've stayed by you for all those years, did you forget that?" Scatter asks.

"Hahah… Fools. You were nothing but tools to me since the very beginning. Besides, it's your fault. _You_ were the ones who decided to save me. You could've left and lived your own lives, but you chose to stay and serve a man who never cared about you to begin with. Now, that I have the Phantom Ruby in my hands, I can create henchmen that are _far_ superior to you three in every way."

"NO!" All three said.

"It's been fun, boys, but your assistance is no longer needed. Sayonara."

Clyde fires an energy blast at his former henchmen. "NOOO! BOOOOOOOOSS!" The blast slowly incinerates Scatter, Ice, and Stone into ashes. The jackals' ashes lands and makes a pile on the laboratory floor. Classic and Modern Eggman are shocked at what Clyde just did.

"You… You… You blasted your own henchmen." said Modern Eggman.

"That's cruel even for me!" said Classic Eggman.

Clyde walks towards Classic and Modern Eggman. "Now, both of you belong to me. Your lab, your equipment, and everything you owned belongs to me. That's how it is for now on."

Both Eggmans gets angry. "You dare give Dr. Egg-"

Clyde interrupts Modern Eggman and uses telepathy to choke and lift the two doctors in the air. "I'm sorry, did I give you two permission to speak?" Then he throws them up to the laboratory wall and traps them with a barrier. Orbot and Cubot are horrified.

"This is bad! Let's get outta here!" said Orbot.

The two robots tries to run away, but Clyde stops them by entrapping them in a barrier.

"Hey! Let us out!" said Cubot.

The evil jackal walks up to the Eggmans and looks at Modern Eggman. "Those two robots are your servants, right?" Clyde asks. Modern Eggman remains silent but looks at him in pure anger. "Hehe."

Clyde fuses the energy inside Orbot and Cubot. Their systems are malfunctioning.

"Orbot! Cubot! What are you doing to my minions?!"

Their systems stop malfunctioning and they are temporarily shut off. In a few seconds, they have awaken with red eyes, they turned to Clyde, and bows to him.

"All hail, lord Clyde." They both said.

Both of their voice boxes changes into a deep robotic voices. "They're _my_ servants now." said Clyde.

"You filthy swine!" said Modern Eggman.

"Now, where was I? Oh, yeah. I haven't been training in years, my muscles have deteriorated because of it. For the next 6 months, you two will help me get stronger before I begin building my organization. I want you to find me a perfect place to train and build the best training equipments you can think of. Then… I want you to make a helmet and a suit of armor for me. Disobey my orders and you will punished."

"You'll pay for this!" Both said.

Clyde smiles sadistically and chuckles. "Hehehehehe… this is going to be fun."

* * *

[Eggman's laboratory]

6 months has passed. Repeating the beginning of Chapter 1, Clyde is seen putting on his armor and helmet.

Narrating. "For 6 months, I have been training to gain back my strength and to have full control of the Phantom Ruby's power. I have built the ultimate terrorist army, an army that will never fall to anyone. I have created a new identity, an identity that strikes fear into the eyes of many."

* * *

[Outside]

The Phantom Terrorist is flying in the air while the entire doom army is marching towards Grand Metropolis.

I… am the Phantom Terrorist. And we… are DOOM CORPS!"

[End of Ch.5]


	6. Despair

[Woods]

Back to Zero and Clyde's conversation.

"So, it was YOU?!" Zero asks.

"Yes. The entire mansion was supposed to explode, yet we're still alive. But I shouldn't complain. Thanks to those three, I lived to obtain this gemstone and use it's power to make my long lost dream come true." said Clyde.

"You turned the entire world into a living nightmare, enslaved and killed so many innocent people, you even killed the henchmen who saved and took care of you for all those years. How? How can you commit so much atrocities and not feel any remorse? How does all of this not bother you?" Zero asks.

"How?" Scratching his chin. "Hmm…perhaps it's because I don't care. And why should I? Why should I feel for those who are weak? In this world, only the strong survives while the weak either gets dominated by the strong or serve them. Since I am now the strongest being in the world, everyone in this world belongs to me now. Those who dares to defy or try to oppose me, will be punished severely." said Clyde.

"Stryker told me that you were always a scumbag, but I never imagined you're capable of going this far!" said Zero with disgust.

"Speaking of Stryker, how about you tell me how you survived the explosion? And what are you doing out here all by yourself? Shouldn't you be with Stryker and the rest of your squad?" Clyde asks.

"We escaped the mansion before it completely collapsed on us. And I have my reasons to be out here alone." said Zero.

"Really? Well, where is Stryker and the rest of your squad. I would love to see them all again."

"….."

"Come now, child. I told you what I've been doing after I was saved, so I think it's fair if you tell me where Stryker is."

"The whereabouts of my squad is none of your concern."

"Don't want to talk, huh? Alright then." Clyde warps up in front of Zero, shocking the latter. Then he grabs the jackal by his neck and lifts him up in the air. "Then I'll just find out where they are myself." Clyde's eyes turn from Red to white. He is using the Phantom Ruby's power to read Zero's memories. "Oh? What's this?" Clyde sees everything that Zero has been through from forming the Survivor's den with the help of the Avatar, the events of Sonic Forces, the murder of the Jackal Squad at the hands of Shadow, joining Eggman, etcetera, etcetera. Clyde stops reading Zero's memories, his eyes turn back to normal, then he starts laughing. "Hahahahaha! Stryker and the jackal squad are dead?! You're the last jackal remaining?" Zero is shocked that Clyde now knows that Stryker and the Jackal Squad are dead. Clyde throws Zero to a tree and continues laughing. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Yes! Yes, I did it! Stryker is dead! That pathetic coward is dead!"

As Clyde laughs in excitement, Zero rubs his neck, gets up, and looks at Clyde in disbelief. "*Cough* *Cough* How? How did you know? What did you do?"

Clyde stops laughing and turns to Zero. "During my 6 months of training, we've learned that the Phantom Ruby grants you the power of Physcometry. An ability capable of reading the memories of another person the user's in physical contact with. Thanks to this ability, I now know that I've succeeded in killing Stryker and I know who 'Infinite' really is." Zero looks at himself with guilt. "Axel. He was a good little pawn. Ever since I took him in when he was a boy, he believed that his entire purpose was to serve me. When I finally formed my organization, he was no longer any use to me. I could've killed him, but I decided to kick him out. I let him live so that he can be filled with nothing but despair. He would lose his purpose and he would not know what to do with himself. Like a father who kicks his son out of his life forever and that poor child has no one else to go to."

"Why are you telling me all this?" Zero asks.

"Because… You don't want to admit it, but you're just like him."

Zero looks at Clyde in confusion. "What?"

"His wife, Ellie the jackal, passed away by bringing you into this world. He hated you for the death of his beloved, just like you hate Shadow for the death of your squad." Zero is now starting to look at Clyde in horror. "When I tracked him down, I thought that you might be related to him because you two share a resemblance to each other. After I showed him that wanted poster, he told me that you're his son, and he joined me for one last time so he can get the chance to kill you out of vengence. You fused with the Phantom Ruby - not only to get stronger, but to destroy Shadow for the same reason." Zero gasps in terror. "Am I wrong?"

"YES!" said Zero.

"It's quite tragic to see the ones you love die in front of you. Especially, when they died from your foolish mistakes. You killed your mother when you were born, but it was Axel's decision to have children in the first place. Shadow killed your squad, but _you_ were the one who got them involved with Eggman to begin with. Are you sure that Shadow killed them out of cold-blood or did he do it out of self-defense? Are you certain that they all didn't attempt to murder him when they first saw him? After all, Eggman did ordered them to destroy any intruder who enters his facility, did he not?" Zero gasps. "You're just as guilty of their demise as he is. And Infinite's birth was no one to blame but yourself. Do you really believe that becoming a hero can help you redeem yourself from the lives you took?" Tears are starting to come out of Zero's eyes. "The jackal squad wanted to build their own empire, right? That's quite an interesting motive. I say it would've took them 10 more years for it to happen. But at least they would've lived to get the chance to see it come true. I wonder how Stryker would feel about you now. Wouldn't he have wanted you to take care of the squad as the new Ultimate Mercenary? Do you think that he would've wanted you to join Eggman for power? And after what Infinite's done, do you really have any right to think I'm a Scumbag?"

Zero takes two steps back and looks at himself in disbelief. "No….no….you're wrong." He looks at Clyde with anger on his face. "You're wrong…! YOU'RE WRONG!" Zero charges at Clyde. "YAAAAAAAAUGH!"

Clyde gives Zero a smug look and chuckles. "Hehehehe…" Clyde's entire body is surrounded by red aura as he unleashes the Phantom Ruby's power on Zero. In a few seconds, everything turned black.

* * *

[?]

Suddenly, everything changed into a strange dark void. Only Zero's voice can be heard from this.

"What…? What's going on? What's happening? Where am I?

* * *

[City]

Zero opens his eyes and his pupils turned purple somehow. When the latter open his eyes, he sees that he is in the city but it is up in flames. There are dead civilians lying on the ground and laser fire can be heard. Zero recognizes what's going on. This takes place in Sonic Forces with Infinite attacking the city after defeating Sonic months ago.

"This place. It can't be! No!" said Zero. Zero starts running away. He later encounters some resistance troopers shooting at Infinite. He stops running and gazes upon the event from a distance. "No! Not this again!"

"There is no reason to resist. Your savior is no more." said Infinite.

Infinite fires a laser beam at the troopers. They all screamed as they're being annihilated. Zero looks at this event in horror. He then sees the Avatar hiding behind cover in fear, when a white wispon lands near them. As they are trying to pick up the wispon, Infinite spots them.

"I can taste your terror, child. All of that anxiety and doubt…" The Avatar picks up the wispon and attempts to shoot Infinite but they're too terrified of the latter to pull the trigger. "It's delicious." Infinite fires an energy shot at them but intentionally misses, causing the frighten Avatar to trip and fall on the ground. "Give into your fear. Flee, screaming, and I'll let you live." Infinite laughs as the Avatar looks at him in worry then they run away from him. Zero places his hands on his head and faces down on the ground with a traumatized look on his face.

"No, not this again! Please! Not again!" said Zero.

Infinite stops laughing then he slowly turns towards Zero. "Hello, Zero." said Infinite.

Zero looks up and sees Infinite gazing upon him. The jackal screams and runs away. Infinite chases after him all over the city while laughing manically. "You can run, Zero, but you can't hide! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

While running from Infinite. "LEAVE ME ALONE!" Zero yelled.

Infinite fires a volley of energy blast at Zero, but every last one of them misses the jackal. "Come back, Zero! I just want to play!" said Infinite.

"This can't be happening! This can't be happening!" said Zero.

The jackal jumps up to the rooftops and Infinite follows him. Zero is trying his best to escape Infinite, but he just can't get away from him.

"You can't escape me, Zero. I'll always be here to haunt you." said Infinite. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Suddenly, reality is changing into something else. And the Phantom ruby's sound effect can be heard.

* * *

[Mystic Jungle]

Reality changed from the city to Mystic Jungle. Zero stops running, looks around, and sees that he is back in Eggman's Facility in Mystic Jungle.

"Here again?!" said Zero.

Suddenly, he heard an explosion from a distance. He recognized that explosion. The explosion was Shadow's Chaos blast; the blast that killed his entire squad. Zero hears the Phantom Ruby's sound effect again, then he was teleported to that area of the explosion. When he arrived, he sees all of his squad lying dead on the ground with daggers, swords, and fire-arms right next each one of them. The jackal looks around in horror and begins crying. Suddenly, a silhouette of Shadow the hedgehog appears in front of him. Zero looks at Shadow in rage.

"Shadow!"

Shadow turns around and looks at Zero. He then gives the jackal a smug look and laughs at him.

"SHADOW!" Zero picks up a sword then charges at Shadow. "RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Zero attacks Shadow only for the Hedgehog to dodge by side-stepping. Zero constantly attacking Shadow but the ultimate life-form is dodging all of his attacks. Shadow eventually catches Zero's sword then kicks the Jackal to a near-by stone pillar.

"Hmph. You're still too weak." said Shadow.

Zero gets up. "I'm… not finished yet!" He picks up a dagger then charges at Shadow again. This time, Shadow teleports away before Zero lands his attack. "What?!" The jackal looks around. "Where did you go?! Come back and face me, Coward!" Zero gets no response. Everything becomes quiet now. But suddenly, Zero sees the one of the jackals are getting up. "Wha…" The rest of the jackal squad, including Claire, Scar, Ace, Brawn, and Radar the jackal gets up and looks at Zero. They all have no pupils as they are staring at Zero.

"Boss… Why?" One of the jackals asks.

"Why didn't you listen to us, Zero? Why?" Claire asks.

"It's your fault that we're dead!" said Ace.

"None of this would've happened if we'd left you to die in the desert." said Scar.

"We trusted you! And you just led us all to our deaths!" said Radar.

"You've killed so many innocent people and for what?" Another member of the squad asks.

All of the jackals are shaming Zero for what he did. Zero starts crying, holds his head, closes his eyes, and gets down on his knees. "I'm… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get you all killed. Please! Everyone… I'm sorry… I'm sorry… I'm sorry." Zero is crying his eyes out and he is muttering to himself.

* * *

[Woods]

Suddenly, everything went quiet. Zero reopens his eyes and sees that the jackal squad has disappeared and he is back in the woods. His pupils returns to normal. He stands up and looks around.

"Well…" Zero turns around and looks at Clyde who is looking at him with both of his arms crossed. "That was quite a show." said Clyde.

"What… What was that?" Zero asks.

"I call it, illusions of despair. An attack that makes the victim relive their most darkest memories. It's a new trick I've learned from my training."

Zero gets angry at Clyde for making him relive those horrible memories. "You…! YOU!" The jackal picks up his sword then charges at Clyde again. "CLYYYYYYYYDE!" Clyde stands there smiling at Zero as the latter is charging at him. When Zero almost lands his attack on Clyde, a strange figure appears and blocks Zero's strike. Zero looks at the figure in shock because he recognizes who it is. "No! No!" The figure who protected Clyde from Zero's attack, was a replica of one of Zero's closest friends in the jackal squad, Claire the jackal. "C-Claire?" Zero pulls back from the replica and looks at her in disbelief. Then suddenly, a replica of Ace and Scar appears. "Ace? Scar?" A replica of Brawn the jackal appears. "Brawn?" Then finally a replica of Radar the jackal. "Radar?" Zero drops his sword and looks at the replicas in shock.

"The gang's all here. Attack!" said Clyde.

The replicas does what Clyde says and charges at Zero. Zero is just standing there in shock as the replicas of his closest squad members charge at him.

* * *

[Survivor's Den]

Meanwhile, back with Team Sonic and the survivors. Sonic, Tails, and the Avatar are talking with some of the survivors while Knuckles contacts the others.

"Hey, guys. How's everything going?" Knuckles asks.

Over Radio. "Hey, Knuckles, we're about to break into a prison facility in the city. We'll contact you once we've gotten all the prisoners out and escorted them back to HQ." said Amy.

"Okay, I'm just checking." He then contacts Rouge and Shadow. "Shadow, Rouge, how's everything going with finding the Chaos Emeralds?"

Over Radio. "We've found the red emerald. We're looking for the green emerald in Seaside hill. And boy did the Phantom Terrorist ruined Seaside hill. The ocean are filled with pollution, the grass and trees are dying, and the place is crawling with doom robots." said Rogue.

"But everything's going well with you two, right?"

Over Radio. "Yes. Everything's fine with us, Knuckles." said Rouge.

"Okay, I'll check back with you two later." Said Knuckles.

"Something's not right. Zero should've been back by now." One of the scavengers said.

"You don't think that he might be in trouble, right?" One of the civilians asks.

"What kind of trouble could he be in?"

"Maybe. Could he have encountered the Phantom Terrorist?"

"No way! Zero is very cautious. And the Phantom Terrorist went back to his tower, right?" One of the survivors asks the Avatar. The Avatar shakes their head in yes but they're starting to get really worried about Zero. Then they inform Team Sonic that Zero might be in trouble.

"You think so? Alright, buddy. We'll go with you to find him." Sonic turns towards Tails and Knuckles. "Right, guys?" said Sonic.

"Yeah." said Tails.

"Yes." Knuckles turns to the civilians. "Everyone, I want you to stay here till we get back. We'll come back here after we've found your leader. When we get back, pack your things, and we'll take you all to our new HQ. Got it?"

"Yes, sir!" All said.

"Alright, let's move out!" said Sonic.

Team Sonic heads out of the Survivor's den. The Avatar picks up some grenades and their wispon then follows Team Sonic.

* * *

[Woods]

Meanwhile, Zero is getting brutalized by the replicas of the jackal squad. They're constantly knocking the jackal around the place. And Zero is crying and yelling in pain as he is being assaulted by the ones he considered his friends and family. While all of this is happening, Clyde is watching the whole thing with the look of satisfaction. Replica Brawn grabs Zero by his dreadlocks then holds him steady for the others to constantly punch him in the face and stomach, using the helpless jackal as a punching bag. Brawn then throws Zero up in the air only for Replica Claire to jump up and roundhouse kick Zero to a tree. While Zero is still on the ground, the jackals are constantly beating on him. Tears are coming down Zero's eyes and his facial expression is distorted with pain and agony. There is nothing Zero could do but lay there on the ground and try his best to block every punch and kick the replicas inflict on him. Clyde is still watching the replicas torture Zero with a sadistic smile on his face. Eventually, Clyde decided to end the assault and tells the replicas to stop.

"That's enough." said Clyde. The replicas stops beating up Zero then steps away from the latter as Clyde walks up to him. Clyde looks down at the beaten Zero. "How sad. Beaten by the ones you considered family. Seriously, I almost felt sorry for you. Almost." Clyde gets down on his knees, grabs Zero by his head, and makes him look straight in his eyes. Zero is crying in pain and agony. "I might as well finish you off now. But I'll give you the opportunity to get a quick and painless death. I can simply erase you from existence right on this spot. You won't feel any more pain and your suffering can finally end. But in order for me to do that, you'll have to beg for it. You have about 10 seconds to start begging. If you do it before time's up, I'll grant your wish and you will disappear forever. But if you refuse to do it, then I'll decide how you will die. And you should already know by now, that it's not going to be painless." Clyde looks at replica Radar. "Start the time."

"1… 2… 3… 4…"

"Come now, Zero. We all know that you're weak. There's no point in trying to prove otherwise. So, swallow that pride of yours, and beg me to erase you."

"5… 6… 7…"

Zero is still not willing to beg Clyde to give him a painless death. "You're going to make this harder on yourself, child." said Clyde.

"8… 9…. 10."

Clyde looks at Zero in disappointment then he stands back up. "I tried to give you an easier way out. Really, I did. But…. You chose to be stubborn. So this will be your fate." Clyde walks away from Zero. "Finish him."

The replicas starts cracking their knuckles as they slowly walks up to Zero. The jackal closes his eyes and prepares himself for death at the hands of his squad. Suddenly, Sonic appears at the Knick of time and uses his light-speed attack to knock the replicas away from Zero. They all vanish after being knocked out by Sonic when they were off-guard.

Clyde stops walking and turns around. "What?!" He sees Sonic as the hedgehog stands in front of Zero, looking at Clyde. "SONIC?!"

Zero opens his eyes and sees Sonic. "S-Sonic...?"

Sonic answers Zero while starring at Clyde. "It's okay, you're safe with us."

Tails, knuckles, and the Avatar appears. The Avatar picks up Zero while Team Sonic gazes at Clyde.

"Hey, Phantom Terrorist. Long time no see!" said Sonic.

"So this is what you look like without that helmet on, huh?" Knuckles asks.

"You finally came out of hiding." said Clyde.

"Yep. And I've been wanting to fight you again – just… not right now. Later!" said Sonic.

The Avatar throws a flash bang at Clyde and it exploded in his face. "AUUUUUGH! MY EYES!"

"Time to move!" Team Sonic runs off while The Avatar follows them by grappling away while carrying Zero.

"Augh! Flash grenades?! Argh!" Clyde regains his vision and sees that Zero, the Avatar, and Team Sonic escaped. "Darn it! They got away. How did they get past the satellite?" Suddenly, Clyde receives a call from one of his soldiers.

Over Radio. "Sir. Do you copy?!"

"Yes. What's the problem?" Clyde asks.

"The prison located here in sunset city has been breached!"

Clyde looks shocked. "What?! How?!"

"They were 5 hostiles. One chameleon, A crocodile, a bumble bee, and two hedgehogs – a male white hedgehog and a female pink hedgehog. They stormed through the prison, almost took out all the guards, and they helped all of the prisoners escape."

"THEY ESCAPED!? Why didn't you call for back-up?"

"We thought we could handle them, sir!"

Clyde face-palms in irritation. "Idiots! *Sighs* Well, I need you to contact HQ. Tell them to check the status on the satellite. And also, there is a group of survivors located in an alley on central street in Westopolis. I want soldiers and tanks at that location now."

"Yes, sir. But what are you going to do?"

"Pay the Eggmans a visit." Clyde puts on his helmet and teleports away.

* * *

[Westopolis]

Back in Westopolis, the Avatar and Team Sonic are leaping through rooftops. Zero is trying to tell the Avatar something.

"T… Th… The Terrorist…" The Avatar stops and puts Zero down. Team Sonic stops to see what's wrong.

"Hey. What's wrong?" Sonic asks. Now that Sonic has a closer look at Zero, he's starting to recognize who Zero is. "Wait. He looks familiar…" Sonic imagines Zero wearing infinite's mask. "Infinite?"

"INFINITE?!" said Knuckles and Tails.

"The… The terrorist… Clyde… he knows…" Zero is in so much pain that is hard for him to talk.

"Clyde?" Tails asks.

"He knows… the survivors… he knows…" Zero passes out.

"What's he talking about?" Knuckles asks.

The Avatar is starting to understand what Zero is trying to say.

* * *

[Survivor's Den]

Knuckles and Sonic bursts into the hideout.

"H-Hey what the-!" said the rabbit survivor.

"Everyone! You gotta get out of here now!" said Sonic.

"The Phantom Terrorist knows where you are! You're not safe here anymore. Pack up all your equipment and we'll escort you out." said Knuckles. All the survivors begins packing all the food, weapons, and other equipments in a hurry.

Over Radio. "Knuckles! Sonic! There are multiple tanks and soldiers heading your way!" said Tails.

"Shoot! He's sending them all here!" said Knuckles.

"Tails. Get buddy and Infi- I mean, Zero back to HQ, we'll take it from here!" said Sonic.

Over Radio. "Roger!"

"I'll stay here and help the survivors get there things together. You take care of the soldiers." Said Knuckles.

"Got it!" said Sonic.

Sonic dashes out of the den to take out the soldiers and tanks.

* * *

[Westopolis]

Sonic finds the soldiers and dashes towards them. "Sorry, guys! You're not getting these people while I'm around."

"It's Sonic!"

"Take him down!"

The army starts targeting Sonic. They all are shooting at him only for him to dodge the bullets. Sonic uses his light-speed and homing attack to take out the enemies one-by-one. The soldiers are trying to hit Sonic but he is way too fast for them. Even the tanks can't catch him. Sonic is single-handedly taking out the doom corps.

"Hehe. What's wrong? Too fast for ya?" Sonic asks.

Meanwhile with Knuckles, all of the survivors have everything packed up, and Knuckles is leading them out of the den.

"Come on! Hurry it up!" said Knuckles. More soldiers suddenly appear and they encountered Knuckles and the survivors. "Stand back!" Knuckles punches the ground with enough force to cause the ground to crack open a large hole around the soldiers. Every last one of them fell inside the hole. "Come on. This way!" Knuckles continues to lead the survivors away from the area. Meanwhile, Sonic is finished taking out the soldiers and tanks.

"Heh! Piece of cake. Now, to catch up to Knuckles." said Sonic. With his super-speed, managed to find and catch up to Knuckles in no time. "Hey, Knucklehead. How's it going?"

"Cut it out, Sonic!" said Knuckles.

Over Radio. "Knuckles, we've made it back to HQ with the prisoners." said Amy.

"Good work, Amy. We're on our way back. We've found more recruits for the Resistance. Is Tails with you?"

"No, he's not. Is something wrong?"

"Well… when we get there, we need to have a discussion about something. We'll be there in a minute." Said Knuckles.

Sonic and Knuckles continues to lead the survivors to the new Resistance HQ.

* * *

[Underground Resistance HQ]

Back in HQ, Amy is on her laptop. Silver and Team Chaotix enters the room.

"All troops have been sent off to the outpost." said Espio.

"We're ready to go, Amy." said Silver.

"Well, we're going to have to wait till Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles come back." said Amy.

"What, why?" Vector asks.

"He said that we all need to have a discussion about something. I don't know what it is but it sounds very important."

Suddenly, Tails and the Avatar enters the room while carrying the unconscious Zero.

"Tails." said Amy.

"Rookie?" Vector asks.

"Hey, guys. We need to talk." said Tails.

"Who's this guy?" Charmy asks.

"Well… you're not going to like this. But… he's Infinite." said Tails.

[End of Ch.6]


	7. Discussions

[Seaside Hill]

In Seaside Hill, the island went from a beautiful tropical island to a ruined island. The grass has turned white, the water has turned brown, and the place is infested with robots. Shadow and Rogue are fighting the robots while searching for the second Chaos Emerald. Shadow is using his focused homing attack and Chaos powers, while Rouge is using her kicks to destroy the enemies. The duo eventually destroyed all the robots and Rouge uses her treasure scout to locate the Chaos Emerald.

"These robots were more of a challenge than the doctor's, but that's not saying much." said Shadow.

Rouge points at a tall stone pillar. "Over there." said Rogue.

Rogue flies towards the pillar and Shadow follows her. They land on it and sees the green Chaos Emerald.

"Ah. There you are, my pretty." Rogue picks up the emerald and gazes upon on it in satisfaction. "Two down, five to go."

"We're going to the casino. Let's go." said Shadow as he turns around and walks away.

"Purple. My favorite color." Rouge follows Shadow and she notice that he's lost in thought. "What's wrong? Something on your mind?" She asks. Shadow thinks about the time he was pulverized and almost got killed by the Phantom Terrorist. The thought about it makes him grits his teeth and close his left fist in anger. Implying that Shadow wants revenge. "Hey, do you hear me?"

He calms down. "I'm focused on finding all the Chaos Emeralds and taking down the Phantom Terrorist. Nothing more."

"I wonder how Omega's holding up. It sure is taking quite a while for him to recover."

"He'll be fine. Now, let's get going." said Shadow.

Shadow runs off.

"That Shadow. Always gotta be so serious." said Rouge.

Rouge follows behind Shadow as they both are heading off to Casino park.

* * *

[Arsenal Pyramid]

Meanwhile, back with Clyde, he appears in front of a pyramid and enters inside. The place is filled with automated inventions that is designed to build different types of doom robots built under Eggman's equipment and technology. Clyde is walking through the inventions and enters a room.

* * *

[Prison hallway]

The room Clyde entered in is a prison hallway. Classic and Modern Eggman's screams in agony can be heard throughout the hallway and most of the cells are seen empty as Clyde walks past them. He finds the cell where the Eggmen are locked up in and sees them chained up to the wall and being electrocuted by some of the doom soldiers. He opens the cell door then walks in.

"That's enough for now." said Clyde.

The soldiers stops and looks at their leader.

"Phantom Terrorist." All said.

"I need to speak with these two alone. Leave now."

"Yes, sir."

The soldiers leaves the cell. After they left, the two scientists looks up and gazes at Clyde with pure anger and hatred in their eyes.

"You." said Modern Eggman.

"Hello, doctors. It's been a while since I've seen you two. How've you been?" Clyde asks. Both of them growls at Clyde then he starts laughing. "Heh-heh-heh, I was hoping for that reaction."

"What do you want?!" Classic Eggman.

Clyde walks up closer to them. "I just came here to talk." Then he uses his powers to materialize a small chair then sits down on it. "About something I've found."

"And that is?" Modern Eggman asks.

Clyde takes out the white wispon and shows it to the Eggmen. "A few survivors were using these types of weapons against me and my men. Tell me what you know about them."

"Well, don't look at me. I don't know what kind of weapon that is." said Classic Eggman.

Looks at Classic Eggman. "I'm not talking to you." Then looks at Modern Eggman. "I'm talking to this Eggman."

"I've never seen that weapon before in my life." Modern Eggman lies.

"Really?" Clyde stares at Modern Eggman suspiciously. "I've also discovered something that is rather… interesting. 6 months ago, Sonic and his allies was at war with a mysterious figure named 'Infinite'. He also wielded the power of the Phantom Ruby, however, the ruby he was using was a prototype. _Far_ weaker than the power of the real Phantom Ruby. He was also working for Dr. Eggman and the two of them conqured 99% of the world, but was eventually defeated by the blue hedgehog."

Modern Eggman is surprised that Clyde now knows about the events of Sonic Forces. "What? I've never told you any of that. How did you find out?"

"I have my ways. Another thing I've discovered is that there are alien life-forms that harness very powerful energy called, Wisps." Modern Eggman is even more surprised that Clyde also knows about the Wisps. "It appears that these aliens' energies are being used as ammunition for these types of weapons. What's concerning me is that how did the survivors convince the Wisps to give their energies to them for these weapons in the first place? Why would they want to help them? And how did the survivors somehow gain contact with these creatures?"

"I don't know anything about these… Wisps." Modern Eggman lies again.

Clyde sees through Eggman's lie. "You're lying, Doctor. Something like this would never go unnoticed by you. You tried to harness their power before for your own purpose. Then you were defeated by Sonic and his friends and they rescued the Wisps from you. I assumed that these aliens took a liking to Sonic and became his allies. They've used these weapons against you and Infinite during the war."

Modern Eggman growls at Clyde again. "RRRRRRGH!"

"Am I wrong?"

Modern Eggman stops growling and realizes that lying to Clyde is not going to work. And if he keeps lying, there's a chance that Clyde will hurt him more than his men ever could. "*Sighs* No. You're correct." Classic Eggman looks at Modern Eggman with a surprised look on his face.

"Good. Now tell me everything about these Wisps."

"Wisps are a race of very powerful alien life forms. Born with a unique and extraordinary energy source called 'Hyper-go-on energy'. The mother is the creator and most powerful wisp of them all, and they're home planet is called Planet Wisp. She gave life to the entire population and she has been raising them as her children. After I've researched about these creatures, I built my own amusement park in outer space and tried to use their power to take over the universe. But that blasted hedgehog and his irritating fox friend ruined my plans. After that, some of the wisps decided to live on earth with Sonic and they've been allies ever since."

"Does the mother have a creator? Like a grandmother and father of all Wisps?" Clyde asks.

"That, I'm not sure."

"Hmm… I see. Now, I want to know more about Sonic and his friends. You told me that he's the fastest creature in the universe and the defender of the world, but I want to know him on a personal level. If you can tell me everything you know about them, then I'll consider letting you two get a one week vacation from torture."

"You'll consider but there's no guarantee, right?" Classic Eggman asks.

"That's correct." said Clyde.

"*Sighs* Very well. Sonic is known to be a free-spirited and good-natured Hedgehog who loves adventure. He is always willing to protect his friends and others from danger, and he's also an arrogant and a stubborn little pest; having a sense of pride to never give up, no matter how bad things get for him and his friends."

"He never gives up, huh?" Clyde thought. "What about his allies? The yellow fox and the red echidna?"

"Tails is the yellow fox boy and is Sonic's closest friend. Tails is a genius – though not as brilliant as I am, mind you – and he is also an inventor like myself. Like Sonic, he enjoys adventure and he is always willing to help others. He's normally a brave fox, but after Sonic was defeated, he ran away and left Sonic behind in fear. Knuckles is the red echidna and is Sonic's friendly rival. He is an ill-tempered and the muscle man of the two. Knuckles is also gullible; that fool is so easy to trick, I have no idea how they've decided to make _him_ the leader of the Resistance."

"Ah. So that's what they're called, the Resistance. He has more allies. What do you know about the female pink hedgehog, the male white hedgehog, the crocodile, the bee, and the chameleon? Also, tell me what you know about this Shadow the hedgehog."

"The pink hedgehog's name is Amy Rose. She is a hedgehog who is extremely in love with Sonic. She claims that her and Sonic's love for each other is true – but her definition of 'love' sounds more like pure obsession and delusion to me. Every time I capture her, she tells me that her "Knight in shinning armor" will save her and she believes that deep down, Sonic truly loves her and he's just too shy to admit it. Even though Sonic runs away from her and refuses her advantages every time." said Classic Eggman.

Clyde looks at Classic Eggman in pure disgust after hearing that explanation. "Ugh. Besides that, is there anything else about her?"

"Well, the Amy of my world is more mature and not so obsessed with Sonic like she used to. She's a feisty young lady and she uses a giant mallet as a weapon against her enemies. It appears that Sonic has accepted her as a friend and he seems to be more comfortable around her."

"Okay. She's useless. What about the others?"

"The white hedgehog?" Modern Eggman is trying to remember Silver. "White hedgehog…white hedgehog." Now he knows who Clyde is referring to. "Ah. Silver! He is a mysterious hedgehog from the future who has the power of Psychokinesis. I don't know much about him on a personal level, but what I know is that he is very determined about saving his future from destruction. The chameleon, crocodile, and bee, I assume you're referring to Team Chaotix. They're a trio of detectives who spends most of their times solving cases. All I know about their abilities is that Espio the chameleon, has the ability to turn invisible, while Vector, the crocodile, is physically the strongest member, and Charmy, well, he's a bee."

"Who is Shadow?"

"Shadow is the ultimate life-form, created by my grandfather, Dr. Gerald Robotnik. The research facility who Shadow was created from was called, Project Shadow, and was developing him for over 50 years. However, the government deemed Shadow as a threat and had the entire facility shutdown. The military arrested my grandfather and took the life of my cousin, Maria Robotnik, after she helped him escape by putting him inside a capsule then sending him off to earth. However, the government later found Shadow then sealed him and my Grandfather's research on prison island, after he tried to destroy humanity out of revenge for what the military did to Maria."

"So he's a science experiment?"

"Basically. He is also a very serious and brooding Hedgehog. Unlike Sonic, he is willing to eliminate those who he deems as a threat."

"Interesting. If he was sealed away by the government, then how and why did they release him now?"

"50 years after the Project Shadow was shutdown, I've discovered Project Shadow from the reading Gerald's diaries. Shadow was regarded as the militaries top secret weapon. I once broke into the island and retrieved Shadow so I can use him for World Domination. Shadow was willing to help me conquer the world, but he later had a change of heart, then became a hero and started working for the government."

"I see."

"Are we done here? I'm starting to hate this game of "100 hundred questions"?" Classic Eggman asks.

"Yes. That's all I want to know. I'll cut you two a week vacation." Clyde gets up from the chair and walks away.

"Wait." said Modern Eggman.

Clyde stops walking then turns to Modern Eggman. "What?"

"What do you hope to gain with all the info I gave you? What are you plotting?" Modern Eggman asks.

"When I've first encountered Sonic, I was willing to get the job done and destroy him. But now, I'm thinking of a different way on how I'm going to deal with him."

"You're going to stop trying to destroy him as quickly as possible? Hah! And here I thought you were smart." said Modern Eggman.

"You're one to talk. After Infinite knocked out Sonic, you had the perfect opportunity to finish him, once and for all. Yet you decided to have him locked up and use pathetic attempts to make him suffer for 6 months. He escaped then you allowed him to defeat you once again when you could've ended him at that moment."

Modern Eggman is left speechless. Classic Eggman looks at Modern Eggman.

"He's got you there." said Classic Eggman.

"Shut up." Modern Eggman said to Classic Eggman. To Clyde. "How do you know about that anyway?"

"I told you, I have my ways. So glad we had this time together, but I have more important things to do. Later."

Clyde leaves the prison cell then closes the door behind him.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I hope Sonic takes him down." said Modern Eggman.

"Same here. By the way, I've noticed that you didn't tell him that Knuckles is the guardian of the Master Emerald. That's quite smart of you not to tell him."

"What did you expect from a Dr. Eggman from another dimension? If I told him that, then he would've tracked down the Master Emerald, and use it as a weapon against Sonic. The Chaos Emeralds are needed in order for that hedgehog to defeat Clyde."

Classic Eggman looks concerned. "Even so, I'm not sure if the emeralds are enough to defeat him."

"What? Why do you say that?"

"When I was using the Phantom Ruby to face off with the Sonic of my world, The Phantom Ruby was powerful enough to bypass the invulnerability of a Super form. It was also capable of snatching the Chaos Emeralds out of Sonic's body then opens a dimensional portal and sucks Sonic in along with it."

"Ah. So that's how the Phantom Ruby and the other Sonic came to my dimension."

"Yes."

"So, what you're saying that even if Sonic finds all seven Chaos Emeralds and becomes Super Sonic, there's still a chance that he might lose?"

"Unfortunately, it's a possibility. Out of all the users, Clyde seems to be the most powerful one of them all. If he wanted, he could even destroy time and space continuum."

"The Phantom Ruby is capable of changing the user into a persona of their darkest traits. But Clyde is the exact same person he is before fusing with the gemstone."

"Because there is nothing for the Phantom Ruby to change about him. Clyde is perhaps the most evil creature I've ever met in my life. He is like a demon who's taken the form of a jackal, and his entire purpose is to cause pain, destruction, and chaos upon others. He is the perfect user to bring out the Phantom Ruby's full potential. If Sonic doesn't stop him now, he could become bored of conquering the earth then decide to cause havoc upon the entire universe."

"All we can do now is…" Modern Eggman is hesitant to say this. "Hope that Sonic and the resistance manage to defeat Clyde and destroy the Phantom Ruby."

* * *

[Underground Resistance HQ]

Meanwhile, back at the Resistance HQ, Sonic, Tails, Avatar, Amy, Silver, and Team Chaotix are all gathered around the table. Knuckles comes in.

"Is he alright?" Sonic asks.

"He's recovering in the infirmary. Whatever the terrorist did to him, he sure did a number on him. He's very lucky to still be alive." said Knuckles. Knuckles looks at the Avatar, in concern. "Alright, Rookie, explain yourself. Why were you with Infinite? And why did you save him?"

The Avatar explains why they decided to save Zero and what they were doing with him after the events of Sonic Forces.

"You didn't have the guts to leave him?" Tails asks.

"And he's been helping you fight crime after you healed him?" Sonic asks. The Avatar nods.

"It doesn't make sense. Why would someone like Infinite want to become a hero after what he did?" Knuckles questions.

The Avatar tells Knuckles that Zero is not Infinite anymore. He's changed into a better person and he wants to help save lives so he can try redeem himself.

"Well, it's great that he's trying to turn a new leaf, but what he did was unforgivable." said Amy.

"He helped Eggman take over the world, he took the lives of innocent people, and he tried incinerate us all by dropping a sun on us." said Vector.

The Avatar didn't forget what infinite did, but he has earned their forgiveness after being with him for the past 6 months. They request that everyone in the resistance let him join them to defeat the Phantom Terrorist.

"What?!" all said.

"No way! We can't let him join us!" said Charmy.

"I agree with Charmy. There's no way I would ever want that monster to join the Resistance." said Espio.

The Avatar is trying to convince everyone to give Zero a chance, but they just can't trust him.

"Listen, Rookie, I get that some people deserves second chances, but Infinite, well, Zero, hasn't gave us a reason why we should trust him. And having him on board with the Resistance doesn't sit well with me." The Avatar asks Knuckles what are they going to do with him then. "When he wakes up, I'm going to interrogate him. Before he passed out, he mentioned that the Phantom Terrorist's real name is… Clyde."

"Clyde? So that means that Infinite and the Phantom Terrorist might know each other." said Amy.

"He might be secretly working for him." said Charmy.

"Hold on there, Charmy, if Zero was working with the Phantom Terrorist, why was he trying to kill him earlier?" Sonic asks.

"Well, I don't know." said Charmy.

"Hmm. The Infinite we all knew was an insane madman. But what the Rookie is telling us about him now, he seems to be a complete opposite of what he was." said Silver.

"Then why did he join Eggman in the first place? Could the Phantom Ruby have something to do with how he behaved before?" Amy asks.

"I'm not sure, Amy. Perhaps, there's more things about the Phantom Ruby that we don't know." said Tails.

"What's also concerning me is that how did he survived? When buddy and I beat him, it looked like he retreated back to the tower." said Sonic.

"The only way we'll be getting some answers is from him." said Knuckles.

"But what about Shadow? If he finds out that Infinite is still alive and we have him here at HQ, who knows what he'll do." said Silver.

"We won't tell him, at least, not yet. Right now, we need to stay focus with our missions. Amy, I want you to stay here and watch Zero. When he wakes up, contact me and I'll be back." said Knuckles.

"Okay." said Amy.

"Everyone else, return to your missions. The Phantom Terrorist now knows that Sonic is out in the open, so watch yourselves out there." said Knuckles.

"Yes, sir."

Knuckles turns to the Avatar. "Rookie, you'll be working with Sonic, Tails, and I. Our job is to shutdown the Phantom Terrorist's weapon factories. Doing that would weaken his military arsenal. Think you can handle it?" The Avatar nods their heads. "Good. Everyone, let's head back out."

Everyone except Amy walks out of the room. Sonic and the Avatar are the last ones out. Sonic notices that the Avatar is worried about Zero, so the blue hedgehog places his hand on their shoulders, trying to cheer them up.

"Don't worry, buddy. Everyone else may not understand, but I'm sure you have your reasons to believe that Zero can be trusted. Everything will be alright." said Sonic.

The Avatar smiles at Sonic and the two walks out of the door, together.

"Be careful out there, everyone." said Amy.

* * *

[Resistance Infirmary]

In the infirmary, Zero is lying down still unconscious, and handcuffed to a hospital bed. He has bandages over his wounds and there is a heart rate monitor standing next time.

[End of Ch.7]


	8. The Plan

[Doom HQ]

Clyde returns to Doom Headquarters. He is walking down the hallway, making his way to the command center. He walks by a couple of Doom soldiers and they both greets him.

"Hello, sir." They both said.

Clyde ignores their greetings and keeps walking. They decided to follow him.

"Is there a problem, sir?" Soldier #1 asks.

"Yes. The hedgehog got past the satellite. He's out in the streets now." said Clyde.

"What?! That's impossible!" said Soldier #1.

"How did the satellite not pick up his signal?" Soldier #2 asks.

"Don't know, but I'm going to find out." said Clyde.

* * *

[Doom Command Center]

The Phantom Terrorist and his two soldiers finds and enters the command center. The room is filled with soldiers and display monitors showing Sonic and his allies attacking weapon factories and prison facilities on various screens. The largest display monitor shows a map to every location around the world. Orbot and Cubot appears, approaches Clyde, then bows to him. The two robots are being controlled by the Phantom Terrorist, so their personalities are different now.

"Greetings, my lord. We've got bad news." said Orbot.

"What's the problem?" Clyde asks.

Orbot and Cubot shows Clyde the location to the Satellite Outpost. On screen, it looks like Doom has lost control over the outpost.

"It appears that we've lost control over the satellite. We can't regain access to it no matter how hard we try." said Orbot.

"It seems like they've somehow hacked into the satellite's system and gain control over it." said Cubot.

"Can you pull up the camera footage where it takes place before the outpost was still in our control?"

"No, sir. They've deleted all the footage after they hacked into the system." said Cubot.

"And that's not all." Orbot pulls up the footage of Team Sonic attacking and shutting down the nuclear factory in Chemical Plant. "Sonic and his two friends, Tails and Knuckles, have shut down the nuclear production factory in the Chemical Plant."

"Also we've found footage of Shadow the hedgehog. We're not sure what he's doing, however." said Cubot.

"Show me." Orbot and Cubot pulls up the footage of Shadow and Rouge heading to the Casino Night Zone. "Who's that with him?"

"Her name is, Rouge the bat. She is a part-time government spy, working for G.U.N, and she is also a professional jewel thief. She is close allies with Shadow, along with a robot called E-123 Omega."

"A jewel thief who's working for the government? How does that make sense?" Clyde asks.

"I believe that it's complicated, sir." said Orbot.

"Omega?"

Clyde recites what Omega said to him when they've first encountered in the first chapter. "I am E-123 Omega; The ultimate E-series robot." said Omega.

"That robot from before?"

"They look like they're heading off to Casino Night." said Orbot.

"Where are Sonic and his other allies now?" Clyde asks.

Orbot pulls up more camera footages. One footage takes place in Central City showing Silver and Team Chaotix, while the other one takes place back in Westopolis, showing the Avatar and Team Sonic.

"Sonic's team are located in Westopolis, while his other allies are in Central City." said Orbot.

"Sir, what should we do about this situation?" Cubot asks.

"I have a plan. I want you two to start building some inventions. Shadow and his bat friend are going to help us track down their hideout." said Clyde.

"How, sir?" Cubot asks.

Suddenly, Clyde receives a call from one of soldiers. "Sir, we've spotted Sonic the Hedgehog. He's heading right towards the Robot factory in Westopolis. We'll need your assistance, now."

"Hold on, soldier, I'm sending you some back-up. And for now on, I won't be assisting any of you to stop Sonic and his allies anymore. You're gonna have to hold them off as much as you can now."

"What?! But sir, why?"

"I have more important things to do, that's why. I'll send some stronger troops to assist you in stopping them."

"Okay, if you say so."

Clyde hangs up then uses his powers to create three figures. After the auras settled, the three figures are the replicas of some of Zero's deceased jackal squad members. Claire, Ace, and Radar the jackal. All three jackals kneels to Clyde.

"Good evening, Phantom Terrorist. How can we help you?" All three asks.

"Radar, Claire, Ace, I have an assignment for the three of you." Turns to Orbot and Cubot. "Orbot. Cubot. Start building me some spy drones. I want it done as quickly as possible."

"Yes, sir."

The two robots leaves to go build the devices.

* * *

[Casino Night]

In Casino Night Zone, the entire place hasn't been destroyed or changed for the worse. Shadow and Rouge enters the zone and they are trying to locate the purple Chaos Emerald.

"The casino is perhaps the only place that hasn't been completely ruined." Rouge is using her Treasure Scoop to find the Chaos Emerald. "Now where might you be, little Emerald?" Shadow and Rouge are searching everywhere in the casino, but Rouge hasn't picked up the signal to where the Emerald is hiding. While they are searching, there is no robots and soldiers anywhere.

"There's no robots or soldiers patrolling around here. I don't like it." said Shadow.

"Well, look on the bright side, Shadow. It makes our search for the third Chaos Emerald a lot easier." said Rogue.

Shadow is still very suspicious as he is being aware of his surroundings while helping Rogue hunt down the Chaos Emerald. Meanwhile, Phantom Radar appears on top of a giant slot machine and he spots Shadow and Rogue. He contacts the other jackals to let them know that he's found his targets.

"Ace, Claire, I've located Shadow and Rouge. How's it going with you two?" He asks.

* * *

[Westopolis]

In Westopolis, Phantom Ace spots the Avatar and Team Sonic breaking into the robot weapon factory from the rooftops.

"I've found Sonic and his team. They're breaking into one of our Robo factories in Westopolis." said Phantom Ace.

* * *

[Central City]

In Central City, Phantom Claire spots Silver and Team Chaotix breaking into another prison facility.

"I have Silver and the Chaotix in my sights. They're trying to free more civilians from a prison here in Central City." Said Phantom Claire.

* * *

[Casino Night]

Back to Phantom Radar in Casino Night.

"Alright, remember, before you engage the targets, activate the adaption drones. Good luck."

Over Radio. "Same to you." Phantom Claire and Ace said.

Before Phantom Radar begins his attack on Shadow and Rouge, he takes out a small drone and activates it. The drone is controlled automatically as it is flying above Phantom Radar on it's own.

"Make sure you capture all the footage of them in the fight." Phantom Radar said to the drone as it flies away. The drone sets itself on camouflage mode so Shadow and Rogue won't be able to see it. "Here goes." The phantom jackal uses his energy to create a large aura surrounding the slot machine, causing it to malfunction. Shadow and Rouge hears it, then turns towards the machine.

"What the-?" Both said.

The giant slot machine is slowly turning into a giant robot. The handles are turning into arms, the slot reels are spinning out of control, and it is creating itself a head and two legs. Phantom Radar is controlling the giant robot on it's right shoulder.

"A giant robot?" Rouge asks.

"I knew something wasn't right!" said Shadow.

The robot fires a laser at Shadow and Rouge only for them to jump out of the way. Shadow charges his spin dash and launches at the robot only for it to use it's left arm to swat Shadow away. Rouge manages to catch Shadow before he hits the ground.

"Gotcha." said Rouge. Shadow teleports away from Rouge without thanking her for catching him. "What, no thank you?"

Shadow appears in front of the robot. He sees Phantom Radar controlling the robot. The jackal and Hedgehog looks at each other and Phantom Radar smiles smugly at Shadow. "Chaos Spear!"

Shadow fires a volley of Chaos Spears at Phantom Radar only for the latter to use the robot's arm to block the blasts. Phantom Radar then fires a volley of rockets at Shadow only for the Hedgehog to dodge them all then makes his way towards Phantom Radar. Shadow charges at Radar with a kick, but Radar sets up a cube-shaped barrier around the robot, blocking Shadow's attack. Shadow pulls back and lands on top of a building. Radar turns off the barrier and looks down at Shadow. Suddenly, Rouge appears behind Phantom Radar with an attempt to surprise attack him.

"Hey! Forgetting someone?" Rouge asks.

Phantom Radar looks surprise then turns around. Rouge attacks the jackal with a kick only for him to dodge. The robot temporarily stops due to Radar losing control over it after dodging Rouge. The bat attacks Radar with a barrage of kicks but he blocks and dodges them all. He teleports behind Rouge, grabs both of her wings together, then throws her away and he fires an energy blast at her. Shadow saves Rogue by jumping up, catches her, and gets her out of the way of the blast's range. Shadow, while carrying Rogue in his arms, lands back on the ground then looks back at the robot. Phantom Radar regains control over the robot.

"Hmm…I guess this makes us even, huh?" said Rogue.

"Hmph." Shadow huffs.

Shadow puts Rogue down then she looks at the robot along with Shadow. "He's controlling the robot." said Rouge.

"I've noticed. In order to take this thing down, we'll have to knock him off first." said Shadow.

The robot is walking towards the duo as they both get in their fighting stances.

* * *

[Central City]

Meanwhile with Silver and Team Chaotix, Silver is using his psychokinesis powers to take out the Doom soldiers while Team Chaotix are leading the prisoners out of the facility. After Silver is finished fighting the soldiers, he helps the Chaotixs escort the civilians outside.

"Area's clear! Follow us!" said Silver.

When they all made it outside, they are met with Phantom Claire, standing outside the main entrance waiting for them. They stop for a moment and looks at Phantom Claire.

"Huh? Who are you?" Silver asks.

"Die." said Phantom Claire.

Phantom Claire manifests several canons and aims them at Silver, Team Chaotix, and the civilians. She fires the missiles at them only for Silver to catch them with his powers. Silver throws them back at Claire only for her to jump out of the way.

"Espio, Charmy, Vector, get everyone back to HQ. I'll handle her!" said Silver.

"But Silver-" said Charmy.

"I'll be fine. Go!" said Silver.

The Chaotix does what Silver said and takes the civilians to somewhere else, away from the battle. Phantom Claire notices that they're trying to escape and attempts to stop them but Silver teleports in front of her.

"Sorry, but I'm not letting you get them!" Silver psychokinetically immobilizes Phantom Claire, levitates her up in the air, then throws the female jackal into a building. Phantom Claire recovers and gazes at Silver with a serious expression on her face. "So you're working for the Phantom Terrorist, huh?"

"That's right! And we're going to destroy you along with your resistance." said Phantom Claire.

Phantom Claire manifests several large laser canons and fires them at Silver only for the latter to create a green barrier around him to block the lasers. Silver takes down the barrier then picks up several nearby empty cars then throws them at Phantom Claire. The jackal gasps in shock then she jumps out of the way. While in the air, She takes out her dual pistols then starts shooting at Silver. The hedgehog catches the bullets then throws it back at Phantom Claire, forcing her to dodge by teleporting out of the way. When she reappears back on the ground, Silver catches her in a Psychokinetic hold, paralyzing her.

"You're outmatched! Give up!" said Silver.

Phantom Claire manages to break herself free from Silver's grasps then jumps away from him, keeping her distance. She manifests several canons again then fires them at Silver only for him to grab them and throws them back at her, forcing her to jump out of the way.

"It's going to take a lot more than that to beat me!" said Silver. Phantom Claire is thinking for a moment then she comes up with an idea. She manifests the canons again. "This again?" She fires the canons at Silver and he grabs them. "I told you, it's no- ARGH!"

While Silver is using his powers on the canon balls, Phantom Claire warps behind him then roundhouse kicked him in the back of his head, sending him flying to a building. While he is down, Phantom Claire takes out her guns then begin shooting at Silver only for the hedgehog to teleport out of the way. Silver reappears up in the air, levitates several empty vehicles, then throws them at Phantom Claire. The jackal materializes a large laser canon then she starts leaping over the vehicles, making her way towards Silver. Phantom Claire, now at close range with Silver, fires the laser.

"Ooof!"

Silver is struck by the blast and he is launched into an indoor parking lot. Phantom Claire pursues him inside the building. Inside, Silver crashes into some vehicles. Phantom Claire lands on the floor then smiles arrogantly at Silver. The hedgehog gets up and angrily looks at Phantom Claire.

"Hehehehe…" She chuckles.

* * *

[Westopolis]

Meanwhile, outside the Robo factory in Westopolis, the Avatar and Team Sonic are fighting Phantom Ace and three of his clones. The Avatar are using their lightning wispon to fight one of the clones. They are trying to hit the clone with the wispons Ivory Whip but the clone is dodging it. The clone fires an energy blast at the Avatar only for the latters to dodge it. Tails uses his rapid tails attack on the second clone only for it block the attack with his sword. The clone pushes Tails back then attacks him only for the fox boy to dodge by flying up in the air. Knuckles is fighting hand to hand with the third and last clone. The clone's fist is infused with the Phantom Ruby's energy so it could be able to trade blows with Knuckles. The echidna and the jackal are exchanging blows. Knuckles manages to land a solid hit on the clone in it's stomach but the clone shakes it off then returns the favor on Knuckles. Knuckles lands another blow on the clone in the face then the clones hits back harder. The clones punch knocks Knuckles back 2 meters away. Knuckles shakes it off then attacks the clone. While the others are fighting the clones, Sonic is facing off with Phantom Ace. Sonic uses his homing attack on Phantom Ace only for the latter to deflect the attack and knocks Sonic away. Phantom Ace fires a volley of cube projectiles. As Sonic is running around after dodging one of them, the projectiles are chasing after him. While running, Sonic smiles arrogantly at Phantom Ace.

"Hah, is that all you got?" Sonic successfully dodges the projectiles then responds by charging his light speed attack then launches at Phantom Ace. Sonic is knocking the jackal around from every direction. Unable to dodge, Phantom Ace sets up a cube-shaped barrier to block Sonic's attacks. "A barrier, huh? No problem." While in the air, Sonic begins charging his spin dash then launches at the barrier. The spin dash had enough force to destroy the barrier then hits Phantom Ace in the face, Knocking him to a wall. Phantom Ace gets up then fires a volley of energy blasts at Sonic only for the latter to effortlessly dodge them. The jackal is frustrated at the fact that he can't catch Sonic.

"Ugh! He's faster than I thought!" Phantom Ace said to himself.

As Sonic is dodging the blast, he starts mocking Phantom Ace. "Ha-ha! You're too slow!"

* * *

[Casino Night]

Back at Casino Night with Shadow and Rogue, they are still having a tough time trying to take down Phantom Radar and his giant robot. The jackal fires a volley of missiles at Shadow and Rouge. Shadow responds by using Chaos Control to stop time. Everything, excluding Shadow, is now frozen in time. Shadow leaps over the frozen missiles then makes his way towards Phantom Radar. Shadow attacks the jackal with a kick but Phantom Radar unfreezes himself and blocks Shadow's attack. Time restores back to normal and Shadow is shocked that Phantom Radar freed himself from his Chaos Control.

"What?" said Shadow.

"You used that attack on the Phantom Terrorist. It won't work on me either." said Phantom Radar.

Phantom Radar uses energy burst to push Shadow away. The jackal then uses the robot to fire a laser at Shadow. The laser knocks Shadow into Casino Night's entrance sign. While flying above the robot, Rouge drops her personalized smoke bombs on it. The bombs created a large smoke that's dense enough for Radar to lose sight of Rogue. As the smoke clears, Rouge attempts another surprise attack on Phantom Radar.

"GAAAh!" Phantom Radar shouts.

Phantom Radar barely dodged Rouge's kick then he punches her in the stomach, knocking her off the robot's shoulder. Rouge catches herself but the robot grabs and holds her in it's right hand. Rouge is trying to free herself from the robot's grasp but to no avail.

"H-Hey! L-Let go of me!" said Rogue.

Phantom Radar smiles evilly after hearing Rogue's demands. "Okay."

The jackal makes the robot throw rogue into the Casino Night entrance sign then she lands on Shadow, who just got up. Shadow pushes Rogue off of him then stands back up.

"Okay, we're gonna have to come up with a plan." said Rogue.

"He also has the power of the Phantom Ruby. My Chaos Control is useless against him."

"When I tried to kick him, he was able to block and dodge my attacks. It appears that he also has experience in combat fighting. It's not going to be easy to knock him off the robot."

"I have an idea."

"What is it?"

"I'm fast enough to launch my attacks at every direction around the robot. I'll keep him distracted while you try to surprise him again. While he's busy fighting you, the robot will stop working – giving me the signal to teleport to your location. If we fight him together, we should be able to knock him off the robot. Once he's off, I'll destroy it then we can interrogate him."

"Okay, then. That doesn't seem like a bad idea." said Rogue.

Shadow takes off running. While skating, Shadow fires his Chaos spears at the front side of the robot.

"You two don't know when to quit, do you?" Phantom Radar asks.

The robot blocks Shadow's Chaos Spears. The brooding Hedgehog begins charging his light speed dash then launches it, making a circle around the robot. While dashing, Shadow fires his Chaos Spears again from every direction around Phantom Radar and the robot. Phantom Radar is trying to fire his laser at Shadow but the hedgehog is moving too fast to lock-on.

"Argh! Darn it, hold still! Huh?" The jackal looks up and sees Rouge attacking him from above. Radar blocks Rouge's attack and the robot stops working because of it. "Face it! You can't win!"

Rouge gives the Jackal a smug look. "Oh, really?"

Shadow appears behind Phantom Radar.

"What the-"

Shadow kicks Phantom Radar in the head, knocking him off the robot. The hedgehog then fires a Chaos Spear at him and the blast knocks him all the way to the ground.

"Nice one!" said Rouge. Shadow spin dashes the robot, slicing off it's head. The robot collapses on the ground. After the robot was destroyed, the purple Chaos Emerald pops out of the slot. Rouge picks up it's signal then flies down to it's location. "Well, whaddaya know." Rouge picks it up. "Three down, four to go."

Meanwhile, Phantom Radar is in a glitch-like effect and he is unable to stand up. Shadow appears in front of him, gazing down at the jackal.

"So you're working for the terrorist, huh?" Shadow asks.

Phantom Radar chuckles evilly. "You don't remember me, do you?"

Shadow looks confused then Rouge lands right next to him. "Remember you? I don't know you."

"Hmph. I see. You really don't remember me. But do you remember Infinite?" Phantom Radar asks.

Shadow and Rouge looks at Phantom Radar with wide eyes. "Infinite?" Both said.

"Ah. You do remember him."

"What about Infinite? He was destroyed six months ago."

"Heh, is that what you think? I'm afraid that you're wrong, Shadow. Infinite is still alive."

"That can't be!" said Rouge.

"Where is he? How is he still alive? I want answers!" said Shadow.

"After he was defeated by Sonic, Eggman kicked him out of his life forever. 6 months later, he joined forces with the Phantom Terrorist in order to get revenge on Eggman, take over the Eggman Empire then conquer the world. Sonic and the rest of the resistance has never seen Infinite without his mask. But you have, haven't you?" Rouge looks at Shadow confused. "He's working as a spy for the Phantom Terrorist. He is acting like he has turned a new leaf to Sonic, because the Phantom Terrorist knew that blue moron is willing to give people second chances. His job is to convince Sonic and his friends to let him join the Resistance, so he can learn some important info on them then report it back to the Phantom terrorist. Doing so, will help our leader come up with a perfect plan to destroy Sonic along with the entire resistance. I bet that he's in your headquarters right not, don't ya think?"

Shadow clinches his fist.

"Shadow?" said Rouge. Without warning, Shadow takes off running. "Hey, Shadow! Wait for me!" Rouge follows behind.

Before he disappears, Phantom Radar contacts Clyde. "The hedgehog fell for it. He's on his way back to their hideout."

Over Radio. "Good work, Radar." said Clyde.

Phantom Radar chuckles as he fades away. While Rouge is flying after Shadow, there are two small devices planted on both of Rouges wings. One of the devices is red, while the other one is blue. Phantom Radar must have planted them after he grabbed her wings.

* * *

[Westopolis]

Meanwhile, back with Team Sonic, they have defeated Phantom Ace as he is on the ground and his clones are the first to vanish. The jackal is also in a glitch-like effect and on the verge of disappearing.

"Wow. You guys are stronger than I imagined." said Phantom Ace.

"Well, what'd ya expect? Stuff like this is what we do all the time." said Sonic.

"How's Zero?" Phantom Ace asks.

Team Sonic are surprised that Phantom Ace knows Zero.

"Wait, you know Infinite?" Knuckles asks.

"Well, the real version of Ace the Jackal knew him. They used to be comrades, along with the other two replicas of the Jackal Squad."

"Jackal Squad?" said Tails.

"Yeah. They was a band of thieves who lived out in the desert. And he was the leader of the squad. I have another question. Does Shadow the Hedgehog know that you have him?"

"Why is it your concern?" Knuckles asks.

Phantom Ace smiles evilly. "You've defeated me. Nice work. But the other two jackals went after your allies. The jackal who went after Shadow and Rouge is quite a loudmouth. You don't think that he's told them about Zero, do you?"

Team Sonic and the Avatar looks shocked.

"It would be a shame if Zero was killed before you got the chance to question him. After all, he does know his Identity."

Phantom Ace fades away.

"This is not good." said Tails.

"We gotta get back to HQ! COME ON!"

The Avatar and Team Sonic hurries back to the Resistance HQ.

* * *

[Underground Resistance HQ]

In the Resistance HQ, Amy is typing on her computer. She is searching on a criminal database website, trying to find information on Clyde. But she is having trouble trying to find anything on him. The Chaotix enters and walks up to Amy.

"The civilians are safe and sound." said Vector.

Charmy flies up to Amy. "Hey, what are you looking at, Amy?"

"I'm trying to find information on this "Clyde". But I can't find anything about him in the criminal database." said Amy.

"What? Why?" Espio asks.

"I'm not sure. It doesn't make sense." said Amy. Suddenly, Amy gets a call from Knuckles.

Over Radio. "Amy! Team Chaotix! Can you hear me? Is Shadow there?!" Knuckles asks.

"Knuckles? Yes, we hear you. And no, he's not back yet. Why, what's wrong?" Amy asks.

"Shadow knows about Infinite!" said Knuckles.

Amy and the Chaotix are shocked. "WHAT?!" all said.

"But how?" Amy asks.

"I don't have time to explain. We need you all to try and stall him as much as you can till we get there. We cannot let him get to Infinite – we need him alive!"

"Roger!" Amy hangs up on Knuckles. "Come on, let's go!" She said to Team Chaotix.

* * *

[Central City]

Meanwhile, Silver is still fighting with Phantom Claire. Silver levitates and throws several vehicles at Phantom Claire then she dodges them all. The jackal responds by materializing a minigun then fires rapidly at Silver. Silver flies back outside, away from the gunfire. Phantom Claire follows him then open fires at him again. After dodging the bullets, Silver fires several of his Psychic knives at Phantom Claire.

"Uh oh!" said Phantom Claire.

After dodging one of them, Phantom Claire runs away as the Psychic Knives are chasing after her. While running, Phantom Claire materializes a grenade launcher then fires several explosives at Silver only for him to catch them. Before he throws them back at her, the jackal takes out a detonator, presses the red button, then the bombs exploded on Silver. The explosion knocks Silver back on the ground.

"I've had enough!" said Silver.

Silver begins using his last resort on Phantom Claire. The Meteor Smash. Silver flies up in the air and begins forming a giant ball of wreckage. Phantom Claire is shocked at how big the ball is but she isn't backing down. She materializes a rocket launcher and was ready for the attack. Suddenly, Clyde contacts her from her earpiece.

Over Radio. "No. That's enough, Claire. The hedgehog and the rest of his allies are heading back to their hideout. And we have all the data we need. Your work here is done."

"Understood." said Phantom Claire.

"Meteor Smash!" Silver shouts.

The hedgehog throws the giant ball of wreckage at Phantom Claire. The jackal is now in a glitch-like effect and she fades away before the ball makes contact. The ball rolls down the street and it eventually breaks itself apart. Luckily, there is no civilians nearby. Silver looks confused.

"Did I get her?" He asks himself. Silver flies around the area in search for Phantom Claire, but he couldn't find her anymore. "Looks like she vanished." Suddenly, Knuckles contacts Silver from his wrist communicator.

Over Radio. "Silver, do you read me?"

"I hear ya loud and clear, Captain!" said Silver.

"Good. Are the Chaotix with you?" Knuckles asks.

"No. I told them to take the civilians to HQ while I hold off one of the Phantom Terrorist's minions."

"Okay, listen! We need you back at HQ! Shadow knows about Infinite and I don't have the time to explain how. Just get back there and hurry!" said Knuckles.

"Okay, I'm on my way!" said Silver.

Silver flies away. After Silver left, one of the drones gets out of camouflage mode.

"Life-form data, successfully copied!"

The drone flies away to a different direction.

* * *

[Doom Command Center]

Meanwhile back at Doom's command center, Clyde, Orbot, and Cubot are looking at a map with a large moving red tracking signal on it on the giant display monitor.

"They took the bait, sir."

Clyde is pleased that his plan is going perfectly. "As expected."

"What shall we do once we find their hideout? Shall we can't them off guard and drop a nuclear explosion on them? Or shall we send in an army of tanks, soldiers, and robots to their location?" Orbot asks.

"Neither of those, Orbot. When they all are gathered back to their HQ, I'm going to give them a message." said Clyde.

"A message, you say?" Orbot asks.

"Yes, Orbot." Said Clyde.

"Very well then." said Orbot.

"Oh and Sir? Are you aware of the possibility of Shadow getting there first then manage to kill Zero the Jackal?" Cubot asks.

"I am. The pathetic fool deserves to die, anyway. Now, I need you two to get started on building that machine. I need it ready in two days top. Oh, and make sure to tell the soldiers at the pyramid to go back to torturing the Doctors."

"Sir, I thought you said you're giving them a week vacation." said Cubot.

"I was, but I changed my mind. Now, move it!"

"Yes, sir." Orbot and Cubot said as they leave the Command Center.

"Going according to plan. Hehehehe…."

* * *

[Sewers]

Amy and the Chaotix are leaving the underground HQ to stop Shadow. From outside, Shadow and Rouge enters the sewer tunnel. They both sees Amy and the Chaotix then they all stop and stares at each other.

"Out of my way! Step aside!" Shadow demands.

"Whoa, what's the big idea, Shadow?" Vector asks.

"I said, move!"

Shadow uses his boost ability to plow through Amy and the Chaotixs. Amy gets up and looks at Rouge.

"Rouge." said Amy.

"Don't look at me." Said Rouge.

"Argh! Espio, Charmy, Vector – get up! We have to stop Shadow!"

"Right, come on boys, let's go!" said Vector.

"Roger!" said Espio.

"Yes, sir!" said Charmy.

Amy hurries after Shadow and the Chaotixs follows her, leaving Rouge behind. Team Sonic, Silver, and the Avatar arrives and sees Rouge.

"Rouge!" said Sonic.

"Well, hello there, big blue. Oh – and you to, Knuckles." said Rouge.

"Where's Shadow?" Knuckles asks.

"He took off. Amy and the Chaotix are going after him."

"What, you're not gonna try and stop him, too?!" Knuckles asks.

"Why should I? Infinite's a genocidal maniac, and did you forget how stubborn Shadow can be?" Rouge asks.

"Listen, Rouge, I know Zero's done some bad – well, terrible things, actually, but we can't let Shadow kill him!" said Tails.

"Zero?" said Rouge.

"Yes, that's his real name." said Tails.

"Forget her, Tails, we have to go after Shadow NOW." said Knuckles.

"We'll explain later, Rouge!" said Sonic.

Team Sonic, Silver, and the Avatar hurries after Shadow, leaving Rouge dumbfounded.

"Huh?"

* * *

[Underground Resistance HQ]

Shadow arrives at HQ and he is skating across the halls, searching different rooms to find Zero. "Where are you?" Shadow eventually finds Zero still unconscious in the infirmary room. "Found you!"

"Stop!" Amy shouts.

Shadow turns around and sees Amy attacking him with her Piko-Piko hammer. The brooding hedgehog dodges the giant mallet by jumping out of the way.

"What're you doing? Get out of my way!" Shadow demands.

Team Chaotix catches up with Amy and stands behind her. "I'm sorry, Shadow, but we won't let you lay a hand on him!" said Amy.

"Fine then!"

Shadow fires a Chaos Spear at Amy only for her to deflect it with her hammer. While she's distracted, Shadow warps up to Amy then slaps her away. Team Chaotix guards the Infirmary door entrance.

"You shall not pass!" said Vector.

Shadow teleports past the Chaotix then walks towards Zero.

"Oh no!" said the Chaotix.

Shadow walks up to Zero then he starts charging another Chaos Spear, attempting to kill the jackal like how he killed his squad. Suddenly, Sonic blitzes past the Chaotix then charges at Shadow, knocking him through the walls. Tails, Silver, Knuckles, and the Avatar arrives and checks on Amy.

"Amy, are you alright?" Tails asks.

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine!"

"Alright, come on, let's go help Sonic!" said Knuckles.

Sonic and Shadow breaks into the main Headquarters. The two Hedgehogs gets up and gazes upon one another.

"Now hold on, Shadow. We don't have to do this. Let me explain."

"Move aside, Sonic! Infinite is now working for the Phantom Terrorist." said Shadow.

"Working for the Phantom Terrorist? What're you talking about?" Sonic asks.

The rest of the gang appears behind Sonic.

"He's working as a spy for the Phantom Terrorist. He's been pretending to be a good person now so that he can convince you all to let him join the Resistance."

"What?!" all said.

"I knew it!" said Charmy.

The Avatar knew that Shadow is wrong. They tell everyone that Zero being a spy to the Phantom Terrorist is absurd.

"Absurd?" Shadow said to the Avatar.

"Hold on, everyone. This doesn't add up. If Zero is working for the Phantom Terrorist, why did he try to kill him when they were out in the woods?" Tails asks.

"He can't have failed him nor outlived his usefulness, we've just brought him here an hour ago. And we've never accepted him into the Resistance." said Knuckles.

"Did you forget what he's done?! He tried to help Eggman destroy us all. If he was willing to do what he did when he worked with the doctor, what makes you think that he's not willing to try again?" " said Shadow.

Rouge comes in. "Did I miss anything?" she asks.

The Avatar explains to Shadow how he's found Zero and what they've been doing after the fall of the Eggman Empire.

"You saved him? And he's been assisting you with helping others? I don't buy it. Infinite is not the type of person to do something like that."

"I have every reason to believe, buddy, Shadow. Infinite now is not the same person we all knew. I don't think we should even call him 'Infinite' anymore." said Sonic.

"Where did you find this information from anyway, Shadow?" Amy asks.

"In the Casino Night, we had quite a battle with one of the Phantom Terrorist's minions. He told us that Infin – well, Zero, is the Phantom Terrorist's spy."

* * *

[Doom Command Center]

Back in the Command Center, Clyde is listening in on the Resistance's conversation via one of the two devices on Rouges wing.

"Time to get their attention." said Clyde.

The jackal presses a green button which activates the red beeping device while the blue one is put on camouflage mode.

* * *

[Underground Resistance HQ]

The red device start beeping that's loud enough for everyone to hear it while the blue device camouflages itself. They're all looking around, trying to find where the noise is coming from.

"What the, where's that sound coming from?" Vector asks.

Rogue finds the device on her wing. "What the?!" She tries to grab it, but the device grows legs and jumps off of Rouge. The device lands on the floor then brings up a large hologram of the Phantom Terrorist.

"Greetings, my friends." said Clyde.

"The Phantom Terrorist!" All said.

"But how di– wait!" Rouge remembers the time when Phantom Radar grabbed her wings and threw her. "That guy we've fought. He must've planted a tracking device on one of my wings!"

"That's correct. You're quite a smart little bat, aren't ya? After my minion planted the device on you, all I needed was to get you and Shadow to lead me back to your HQ." Clyde said to Rouge.

Shadow grits his teeth in anger. "You tricked me?" Shadow asks.

"Yes. Yes, I did." Clyde said proudly. Everyone is all tensed up now that the Phantom Terrorist knows where their headquarters are. "Relax. I may know where you are now, but I'm not going to send an all-out attack on you." Everyone now looks at Clyde in confusion. "You see, I'm not really a fan of taking out your enemies when they were never prepared for battle. That sounds like a cowardly move to me. I'm here to give you all a message."

"A message?" Knuckles asks.

"Yes. Sonic the Hedgehog. I'm calling war upon you and the entire Resistance." What Clyde said shocked everyone.

"War?!"

"Yes. If I'm not mistaken, you all are trying to free the prisoners – not only to save them, but to recruit more soldiers to your army. And you're trying to weaken my arsenals by shutting down my weapons factory I've scattered all over the world. Is that right?"

Sonic gives Clyde a confident smile. "Hah! Yeah, that's right!" said Sonic.

"Well then, Hedgehog, you're doing a great job. However, now you will be facing much stronger resistance now that I know what you're doing. I'm not going to try to stop you myself, my soldiers and robots will be doing that for me. Four days. I'm giving you all four days to gather up all the soldiers and weapons you need for our battle. Sounds like a good enough time to spare, wouldn't you agree?"

Knuckles thinks about this then gives his decision. "Yeah, that's enough time."

"Heh! Four days is all we need. If it's a fight you want, then it's a fight you'll get, Phantom Terrorist. Or should I say, Clyde."

The Phantom Terrorist is surprised that Sonic knows his identity. After a few seconds of silence, the Phantom terrorist starts laughing.

"So, the brat told you my identity, huh? Well then, I guess there's no need to keep this on." Clyde takes off his helmet and reveals his face to the Resistance.

"Oh, so that's what he looks like?" said Charmy.

"And he's not half bad looking. What a waste." said Rouge.

"Alright, Clyde, where do you want to fight at?" Sonic asks.

"The Mountaintops." said Clyde.

"Whatever it takes, we're taking you and your empire down!" said Shadow.

"We'll see about that, 'Ultimate life-form'. See ya then."

The device shuts off the hologram and shut's itself off. Shadow walks up to it then steps on it. "Hmph."

"War, again?! Oh man!" said Vector.

"I know, Vector, war is never good. But if we can come out on top from the battle with Eggman, we'll do the same with this guy."

Suddenly, they hear Zero's voice.

"What the? Where am I? Hello? Is anyone there?"

"It's Zero, he's awake." said Amy.

[End of Ch.8]


	9. Zero's Depression

[Doom Command Center]

The chapter begins seconds before Clyde ends his conversations with Sonic and the Resistance.

"Alright, Clyde, where do you want to fight at?" Sonic asks.

"The Mountaintops." said Clyde.

"Whatever it takes, we're taking you and your empire down!" said Shadow.

"We'll see about that, 'Ultimate life-form'. See ya then." Clyde shuts off the hologram. "It's been such a long time since I've went to war. When that day comes, I'm going to enjoy destroying you and your friends, Sonic the Hedgehog."

* * *

[Resistance Infirmary]

Back at the Resistance HQ, Zero starts waking up. While he is opening his eyes, he hears the voices of Vector and Knuckles.

"War, again?! Oh man!"

"I know, Vector, war is never good. But if we can come out on top from the battle with Eggman, we'll do the same with this guy."

Zero shakes his head then looks around, wondering where he is. "What the? Where am I? Hello? Is anyone there?

* * *

[Main Headquarters]

Everyone hears Zero's voice.

"It's Zero, he's awake." said Amy.

"Well, that was fast." said Sonic.

Shadow starts walking back to the Infirmary until he was stopped by Knuckles.

"Shadow." said Knuckles.

"What now?" Shadow asks.

"I know what you're thinking and we won't let you do it." said Knuckles.

"He may not be working for the Phantom Terrorist, but he still cannot be trusted!" said Shadow.

"Look, Shadow. We need to know more about Clyde and Zero is the only person who's had some history with him." said Sonic.

"You do know that you can look into G.U.N's criminal database and find information about him, right?" Shadow asks.

"I tried that, but I can't find any information about him anywhere." said Amy.

"Nothing?" Shadow asks.

"Nothing." said Amy.

"- Hello?" said Zero.

"Look, I get that you don't trust him, but in order to get information about the Phantom Terrorist, we need him alive." said Knuckles.

"*Sighs* Fine. And what do you plan on doing with him afterwards?" Shadow asks.

"I'll decide on what I'll do with him." said Knuckles.

* * *

[Resistance Infirmary]

"Hello?"

Zero stops calling for anyone then starts thinking about what Clyde said to him.

"After what Infinite's done, do you really have any right to think _I'm_ a scumbag?" said Clyde.

As tears begins to come out of Zero's eyes, Knuckles enters the room. "So, you're finally awake?" Knuckles asks.

Zero quickly wipes his eyes then looks at Knuckles. "Wait. You're the leader of the Resistance, are you?" Zero asks.

"I am." said Knuckles.

"Why did you bring me here?" Zero asks.

"You're in the Resistance Infirmary. You were beaten pretty badly so we decided to bring you back to our Headquarters so we can heal your wounds."

"You know, don't you?" Zero asks.

Knuckles closes his eyes. "Yes. We now know who you are." said Knuckles.

"Then why did you save me?" Zero asks.

"Rookie trusts you, Zero. But I can't say the same thing about the others." Sonic and the gang enters the room. "We want to ask you some questions regarding the Phantom Terrorist."

Zero looks at the rest of the Resistance then he spots Shadow. The jackal gasps as he gazes upon the hedgehog who killed his squad and took everything he strived for away from him. "Shadow. SHADOOOW!" Zero tries to get out of the bed to attack Shadow but the handcuff is keeping him from doing so. Zero's attempt to attack Shadow surprises everyone. The black Hedgehog feels threatened then he starts to attack Zero only to be stopped by Sonic, Tails, and even Rouge.

"No, Shadow!" said Sonic.

Knuckles places both of his hands on Zero's shoulders and he is trying to calm him down. "Hey, calm down! Knock it off!" said Knuckles.

"LET ME GO! LET ME GO! I MUST EXACT RETRIBUTION ON HIM FOR HE DID TO ME! LET ME GO!" Zero shouts.

"I said, KNOCK I-" The Avatar pushes Knuckles out of the way. "HEY!"

The Avatar places their hands on Zero's shoulder. They are now the ones who's trying to calm down the Jackal. Zero stops moving then he looks at the Avatar in pure rage.

"You? What're you doing?! LET ME GO!" Zero demands.

The Avatar shakes their heads in "NO". As Zero looks at the Avatar dead in their face, he thinks about another thing Clyde said to him.

"You don't want to admit it, but you're just like him." Said Clyde.

Zero then thinks of his father, Axel the Jackal, as he is still looking at the Avatar. Zero now looks at them with wide-eyes then he turns his head away from them.

"Okay. I get it." said Zero.

Everyone, including Shadow, is now at ease. The Avatar takes their hands off of Zero's shoulder.

"Phew, that was close!" said Sonic.

"What the heck was that all about?" Vector asks.

Zero remains silent.

"Nice job, Rookie. Now as I was saying," Knuckles walks back up to Zero then the Avatar steps aside. "you know something about the Phantom Terrorist."

Zero looks at Knuckles. "I don't know what you're talking about." said Zero.

"Don't play dumb with me! Before you passed out, you called him 'Clyde' after saying 'The Terrorist'." said Knuckles.

"…."

"You _do_ know him, do you?" Knuckles asks.

"…."

"Hey! I'm talking t-" Sonic interrupts Knuckles.

"Hey – Hey, Knuckles. Let me handle this." Sonic turns to Zero. "Listen, Zero. We need to know about the Phantom Terrorist and only you can tell us about him."

"…."

"Buddy told us what you were trying to do." said Sonic.

Zero turns towards the Avatar. "Is that true?" Zero asks them.

The Avatar shakes their heads in "Yes".

"If you really want to redeem yourself, we need you to tell us about Clyde. Can you do that?" Sonic asks.

"Fine. I'll tell you. But first," Looks at Shadow. "I want him out of my sight."

"What? I'm not going anywhere." said Shadow.

"Shadow!" said Knuckles.

"Look, I don't care what you do to me, I'm not telling you anything unless he leaves." said Zero.

"Alright then," Sonic turns and looks at Shadow. "Shadow."

"You can't be serious." Sonic stares at Shadow with the look of sternness. "*Sighs* Fine." Shadow walks out of the Infirmary.

"I'll keep an eye on him." Rouge said to Sonic as she follows Shadow out the Infirmary.

"There, he's gone now." said Knuckles.

"Jeez, why do you hate Shadow so much?" Charmy asks.

"You wouldn't understand." said Zero.

"That's not important, Charmy. Now, Zero, tell us what you know about the Phantom Terrorist." said Espio.

"Clyde the Jackal. I've never had any interaction with him until now. A friend of mine name Stryker the Jackal knew a lot about him. He once told me that he and Clyde used to be comrades who worked for a terrorist army called, M.A.A.A.G, Men At Arms And Glory organization."

"M.A.A.A.G?" Sonic and the gang said.

"You were friends with a terrorist?" Knuckles asks.

"He changed and gave up his life as a terrorist long before I was born. Clyde, however, refused to change. I've heard at lot of things about him; awful things. Even when he was a soldier in M.A.A.A.G, he loves to destroy and torture innocent lives. He once had a dream to get stronger so he could be able to kill the ruler of the organization in battle, then take over as the new leader. Long ago, M.A.A.A.G once launched an attack on Grand Metropolis. They lost the battle due to the huge technology gap between it and them. Stryker was the only one with some sense to retreat, but Clyde viewed his actions as cowardly then tried to kill him. He lost the battle against Stryker then he was found and arrested by Grand Metropolis' authorities. 7 years later, Clyde gain some followers and with their help, he managed to escape the prison and they all settled down in a desert city called Silvertown."

"Well, if this is the first time you've actually met him face-to-face, how does he know you?" Tails asks.

"I'm not really sure how, but he found out that Stryker was still alive. He knows me because I was one of his friends. 4 years ago, he forced us to participate in an all-out war with him and his gang. Before the war began, Clyde planted explosives all over his house. After he lost the fight with Stryker, he tried to kill us all by setting off the explosions while we were all still in his mansion. He tried to take us down with him. We managed to come out alive, but Stryker… he died after his battle with Clyde."

"That's awful." said Amy.

"Wait. You said that he tried take you down with him, right?" Sonic asks.

"Yes."

"Then…how'd he get out?" Sonic asks.

"He was wounded after the battle with Stryker. A few of his men found him then helped him escaped. Afterwards, they took him to a hospital in another city. He was in a coma for 4 years. After he finally woke up, his men took him out of the hospital, then they found the Phantom Ruby out on the road. Also, did you guys know that there are two Dr. Eggmans?"

"Two Eggmans?" Knuckles asks.

"Yes. Clyde and his henchmen encountered the Eggman from another dimension then forced him to help them find the Eggman of our world."

Tails is thinking hard about this. "Two Eggmans. Wait! Now I know what he's talking about! The other Sonic's Eggman must have been transported from his world to ours by the Phantom Ruby."

"Other Sonic?" Zero questions.

"Yeah. You saw him before. You know, the smaller and chubby version of me? He fought along side us against you and Eggman's army. Remember?"

* * *

[Eggman Empire Fortress, Night]

Zero thinks back before Infinite created the artificial sun.

"Is there no end to these annoying insects? I will burn your resistance to ashes, and you along with it!"

* * *

[Resistance Infirmary]

Zero now remembers seeing Classic Sonic while he was still Infinite.

"Oh, yes, I did saw that Sonic that day." said Zero.

"I have some questions I would like to ask you, Zero." said Tails.

"What is it?" Zero asks.

"Is the Phantom Ruby capable of turning those who harness it's power evil? And after we shutdown one of the Phantom Terrorist's robot factory in Westopolis, we encountered a replica version of a Jackal who knew you, name Ace." Zero looks at Tails with wide eyes. "Can you tell us more about the Jackal Squad?"

"...Sorry, regarding them, I'd rather not talk about it." said Zero.

"Oh, well okay then." said Tails.

"The Phantom Ruby. Yes, it is capable of corrupting the user. The Phantom Ruby existed for thousands of years. Nobody, not even Eggman knows who created it, but after researching it's history, one will assume that it's sole purpose is to bring Chaos and Destruction into the world. Those who fully posses it's power, will transform into a corrupted version of themselves or become mad with it's power."

"The ruby is capable of corrupting a person? But…that can't be. Buddy used one of the Phantom Ruby prototypes to stop that sun and didn't turn evil."

"The one you used was a defect model; an incomplete version of the Finalized Phantom Ruby Prototype. The defects can only be activated by the first character who triggered it and the character must have a strong will to activate it. The defects has more restrictions to the abilities of the Finalized Phantom Ruby prototype and the real one. They can grant the user the ability to cancel out energy from another prototype, but when they are pushed to their limits, they will be destroyed. Unlike the Finalized version and the real one, the defects are restricted from corrupting it's user."

"Why did Eggman want to create more prototypes of the Phantom Ruby? And why wasn't he able to complete the other models?" Tails asks.

Zero is more hesitant to answer those two questions from Tails, because it would require him to tell the resistance more about the Jackal Squad. And what happened at Mystic Jungle regarding them and Shadow the Hedgehog. So he's trying to come up with a lie.

"The doctor said that they are used as back-up plans. In case if the original Phantom Ruby got destroyed, there is more copies he can use against Sonic. He managed to make one completed copy of the Ruby, but he wasn't able to finish the others in time. After Sonic was defeated and Eggman took over the world, he told Infinite to make sure he dispose of the defective models because he no longer found any use for them."

Zero is hoping that Tails and the Resistance buys his lie.

"Hmm…I guess that makes sense." said Knuckles.

"I have two more questions. Do you know another weakness to the Phantom Ruby? And why did you join Eggman and help him conquer the world?"

"Clyde has possession of the real Phantom Ruby. I'm not sure if he has the same weakness Infinite had. So, I can't answer that question. Regarding my reasons for joining Eggman…. I'd rather not tell you why. I'm sorry."

* * *

[Main Headquarters]

Outside the Infirmary, Shadow is leaning up against the wall with his arms crossed while Rouge is watching him.

"Ya know, he has quite a grudge against you. Care to tell me why?" Rouge asks,

"I don't know what he's got against me and I don't care." said Shadow.

"Hmm… That Jackal we fought knew you very well, yet you said that you don't know him."

Shadow is trying to remember Radar but he can't. "…I don't remember him."

"*Sighs* Alright then. Whatever you say." said Rouge.

Suddenly, Omega enters the room, fully repaired and functional. Shadow and Rouge notices him.

"Omega." Both said.

Omega sees his comrades then walks up to them.

"Hi. It's about time you showed up. How are you feeling?" Rouge asks.

"Shadow the Hedgehog. Rouge the bat." The robot looks around. "What is this place? What is going on?" Omega asks. Shadow and Rouge explains everything to Omega about the situation they're all in. "Situation understood. What shall I do to assist?" Omega asks.

"Shadow and I are tracking down the Chaos Emeralds. We've found three emeralds and only four more to go." said Rouge.

"The next emerald we're going to find is the yellow one, located in South Island's Green hill. In order to defeat the Phantom Terrorist, we'll need all seven Chaos Emeralds." Said Shadow.

"We could use your help with finding them all. Whaddya say?" Rouge asks.

"Mission Accepted. Hunt down the last four Chaos Emeralds." said Omega.

The rest of the Resistance enters the room and they all see that Omega has awoken.

"Omega. You're awake!" said Tails as he flies up to Team Dark.

"What did he say about the Phantom Terrorist?" Shadow asks Sonic.

"He's one nasty piece of work, alright. Zero told us that he was a former terrorist soldier who came up in an organization called, Men at Arms and Glory. His motivation is to become the most feared terrorist and build the most powerful military in the world." said Knuckles.

"Who is Zero?" Omega asks.

Rouge knows that if she tells Omega that Zero is Infinite, he would exact revenge on the jackal for he did to him. So, she's trying to come up with a lie.

"Um…well-" Knuckles interrupts her.

"He is a former spy from another organization outside of G.U.N. He's been trying to track down the Phantom Terrorist for as long as he can remember. His military was destroyed by Doom and he was the last person standing. He escaped through the woods but The Phantom Terrorist found him and he would've killed him had Sonic, Tails, Rookie, and I not rescued him." said Knuckles.

"Very well," Turns to Shadow and Rouge. "Shall we continue the mission?" Omega asks.

"Yes. We're going off to find the rest of the Emeralds. Rouge, Omega. Let's go." Said Shadow.

Team Dark leaves the Headquarters.

"Nice job with covering Zero, Knuckles." said Sonic.

"Have you decided on what you're going to do with him yet?" Silver asks.

"No, I'm still thinking. Right now, he'll stay in the Infirmary so he can be fully recovered. Everyone will return to their missions. Amy, you stay behind and look after Zero. Silver, Team Chaotix, you'll continue to find and rescue more civilians. The rest of us will continue to find and destroy enemy factories. Be careful, there will be stronger soldier and robots protecting the facilities."

"Yes, sir." All said.

"Alright. Let's move." said Knuckles.

"Be safe out there." said Amy.

While they are walking out the door, Sonic recites what Zero said to him before he left the Infirmary. ("Clyde is unpredictable. It may seem like he just want to kill you all in a fair battle, but he's always got something else up his sleeves. Be careful.")

* * *

[Strange Void]

Zero is seen sleeping inside a strange dark void. Infinite's voice is heard all around the void.

"Wake up. Wake up. Wake up. WAKE UP!" said Infinite.

Infinite's shout woke Zero up. "Huh? W-What?" The Jackal looks around, wondering where on earth he is. "Where am I? How'd I get here?"

"Well, what do we have here?" said Infinite.

Infinite appears right in front of Zero.

"What?! You!" said Zero.

"Why hello, Zero." said Infinite.

"I want nothing to do with you anymore! Go away!" said Zero.

"Hahahah… You really think you can escape your past? Wow, you really are pathetic." said Infinite.

"Go away! Leave me alone!" Zero demands.

"Why, Zero. I am you, and you are me. I was created by nobody but you, remember?" Infinite asks.

"Go away!" said Zero.

"You were so stupid to not listen to your squad, and you were so weak to avenge them. That moment reminded you of all the bad things that happened before you joined the Jackal Squad. And Shadow took everything you've accomplished away from you. Hahahah… You were so devastated and desperate to get stronger so you can get revenge on Shadow, that you threw away everything to gain power from the Phantom Ruby."

"Go away!"

"I'm not going anywhere, Zero. At least, not at this point." Infinite slowly hovers towards Zero. "You know, there is one way to get rid of all your bad memories. And I think _you_ know what it is, child."

Zero moves away from Infinite. "Get away from me!"

"Why? I'm just trying to help you. If you don't do it, how will you be able to live with yourself?" Infinite asks.

"I said, stay back!"

Infinite warps up to Zero then holds his head, forcing him to look at him in his eyes. "Do you think you can atone from your sins? Do you think you have a chance at earning the Resistance's trust? Let's discuss a scenario, shall we? Let's say if you manage to defeat Clyde, then what? You won't wallow in your own guilt anymore now that you've saved the world? Your squad can now forgive you for getting them killed? And," Infinite takes off his mask. Infinite without his mask on has two yellow pupils, his eyelids are bright red, and he looks at Zero while giving him a smiling evilly at him. "Do you think the monster _you_ created will go away?" Zero is scared out of his mind as he gazes upon Infinite without his mask. "What's wrong, ZERO? Scared of YOUR own reflection? HAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Zero screams as Infinite laughs at him.

* * *

[Resistance Infirmary]

Zero wakes up from his horrifying nightmare screaming. He stops screaming then looks around and sees that Infinite and the void is gone. He's still in the Resistance infirmary. The latter holds his heart in relief.

"It was… just a dream. O-OW!"

Zero's panic caused his left hip to start aching. Amy walks in the room holding a tray of cooked steak, broccoli, a glass of water, and a small capsule full of pills. The female hedgehog notice that Zero is awake.

"Oh, you're awake." said Amy.

Zero turns and looks at Amy. "You. You're one of Sonic's friends."

"Well, actually, I'm his girlfriend." said Amy.

"Really? So if I ask him if you're his girlfriend the next time he comes back here, would he say yes?" Zero asks.

"Um… well, suppers ready." Amy dodges the question and walks up to Zero to give him his food. "Now after you eat, you need to take these pills to help numb the pain."

"I'm…I'm not hungry." Zero's stomach starts growling.

"Uh, huh. Come on now, you need to eat."

Zero turns and looks at the wall. "I said, I'm not eating anything."

"Look, if you don't eat you'll-" Amy looks closely at Zero and realizes that he is depressed. "Is that?" She now knows what Zero is trying to do. "Why? Why did you do it? Why did you join Eggman to conquer the world?"

"There's nothing I could say that can ever justify what I've become. So many lives were lost because of my foolish decision. I'm a monster."

Amy is starting to pity Zero. "Hey."

Zero looks at Amy. "What?"

"Do you want to join the Resistance?" Amy asks.

"Join the Resistance?"

"Yeah." said Amy.

"Why? Why would you ask me a question like that after everything Infinite's done?"

"Well, you're not Infinite now, are you?"

"…."

"You were sleep for a couple of hours. After Sonic and them left, I did contact one of the people you've helped survive for so long. I didn't tell them about Infinite, obviously, but I did ask how you behave when you were helping them. They said you and your partner was so eager to keep them safe. You were overprotective of them, but they said if it wasn't for you, they would've been killed or forced to work as a slave for the Phantom Terrorist. After that, I got to thinking that maybe we should give you a second chance. Maybe you really deserve one."

"Even if I were to join, how can the others trust me? How can I earn their forgiveness?"

"Let me tell you something about Shadow. When we first met him, he and Rouge used to join Eggman to conquer the world. Shadow used to not care about the world being destroyed, but eventually he realized that what he was doing was wrong. Then he helped Sonic saved the world, and he was no longer a bad guy. Shadow deserved a second chance and if he can get one, you can, too."

"I see."

"Now, come on. You need to eat and after that, take your medicine."

"fine."

Zero starts eating his food.

"Second chance, huh?" Zero thought as he eats.

[End of Ch.9]


	10. Episode Team Dark

[Doom Manufacturing Center]

Inside of Doom Manufacturing Center, there are tons of scientists building a giant machine. Three drones enters the facility then flies up to Orbot and Cubot who are making sure the inventors build the machine correctly

"All enemy life form's abilities has been adapted." said one of the drones.

Orbot contacts the Phantom Terrorist. "Sir, the drones has returned."

Over Radio. "Excellent. Contact me when you're done with the Titan. I want to see it for myself." said Clyde.

"Yes, sir." said Orbot.

* * *

[Green Hill]

Team Dark has arrived to Green Hill Zone. The island is also ruined with grass turning grey, the water is filthy, the palm trees are dead, and the totem poles broken.

"Wow, this is just awful. Green hill looks even worse then what it was when Eggman took over." said Rouge.

"And it'll only get worse unless we find the Chaos Emeralds and put an end to the Phantom Terrorist's reign. Stay alert, there could be robots and soldiers here." said Shadow.

"Enemies approaching!" said Omega.

Suddenly, an army of flying doom robots and soldiers appears.

"Well, talk about convenience." said Rouge.

"Initiating battle mode!"

Omega activates his weapons and begins shooting at the robots. He manage to destroy some of the flying drones, but the others dodges the bullets. While Omega is fighting the Robots, Shadow and Rouge are fighting the soldiers.

"Worthless models! I will eliminate you all!" said Omega.

While fighting. "He sounds like he's having fun." Rouge said sarcastically.

"Take them down! Whatever it takes!" said one of the soldiers.

The soldiers are using lasers to take down Shadow and Rouge, but Shadow is too fast for them to hit, and Rouge is dodging by flying. Shadow and Rouge are taking out the soldiers with ease. The robots are shooting back at Omega but their weapons are useless against the Mighty Robot. One of the soldiers calls for back-up while Team Dark is distracted.

"Come in. We're engaging enemy targets in Green Hill, but they're too strong. Send out the Goliaths! I repeat, send out the Goliaths!"

Over Radio. "Roger."

After calling for backup, the soldier goes back to fighting only to be defeated by Rouge. Eventually, Team Dark has defeated all the enemies. Shadow was left dissatisfied with how easy it was to defeat the enemies.

"Hmph. Is this what he meant when he said we'll be "Facing stronger resistance"? How pathetic." said Shadow.

Suddenly, a few air crafts flew over South Island and drops three giant containers in front of Team Dark. Something breaks out of the containers, revealing to be three giant robots with the muscular bodies. The first one is armed with an electricity rod, The second one is armed with a giant mini gun, and the third one is armed with a giant hammer. Shadow and Rouge looks at the robots in surprise.

The bat girl turns and looks at Shadow. "You just _had_ to say something, did you?" Rouge asks.

The robot with the rod starts attacking Team Dark first. It tries to hit them but all three of them jumps out of the way.

While in the air. "I'll handle this one. Rouge, you take the one with the hammer! Omega, you take the one with the machine gun!" said Shadow.

"- Got it!" said Rouge.

"- Affirmative!" said Omega.

Shadow lands back on the ground, charges his spin dash, then launches at the robot. Shadow lands a direct hit on the robot in it's stomach, pushing it back 8 meters away. While in the air, Shadow fires multiple Chaos Spears at the robot only for the machine to set up a barrier around itself to block the attacks. The robot drops it's barrier then tries to hit Shadow with the rod but the hedgehog uses Chaos Control to teleport behind it. Shadow attacks the robot from the rear using his Chaos Attack technique from Sonic 06. The Attack didn't do that much damage, however. The robot quickly turns around and tries to land a solid blow on Shadow only for the latter to quickly dodge by teleporting away. Shadow reappears standing on top of a large Totem Pole.

"Hmph. Not bad." Shadow thought.

Meanwhile with Omega and Rouge, The hammer robot is trying to hit Rouge but the latter is constantly dodging it by flying.

"Y'know, it's not nice to attack a lady!" said Rouge.

The robot is having a difficult time trying to catch Rouge. The bat flies up in the air then drops a few bombs on the robot. The bombs exploded on the robots face but they didn't destroy it. The robot swings at Rouge up in the air only for the latter to dodge by descending to the ground. While on the ground, Rouge quickly flies towards the robots legs then delivers a powerful kick on it, causing it to trip and fall flat on the ground. Omega is firing missiles at the mini gun robot. The robot turns on it's barrier and blocks Omega's missiles. The robot drops it's defense then opens fire at Omega only for the latter to quickly move out of the way. After dodging the bullets and gets behind his target, Omega fires his beam canon at the robot and it was strong enough to leave a damaging hole on the robot's back. The robot turns around and opens fire at Omega again but the mighty E-series robot jumps up in the air then fires his Omega launchers at his enemy.

"You are no match for me! Accept your defeat at the hands of your superior!" said Omega.

Shadow uses homing attack on the robot only for it to turn on it's barrier again to block it. Shadow pulls back from the robot and lands back on the ground.

"I can't attack it from the front. I'll have to catch it by surprise and attack from behind." Shadow thought.

The robot swings at Shadow but the hedgehog dodges by teleporting behind it. As soon as Shadow was about to strike, the robot turns around and lands a solid blow on Shadow, sending him flying to a large Totem pole. Shadow catches himself then leaps back into the fight.

"The same trick won't work twice, huh?" Shadow thought.

The robot swings at Shadow again but he teleports out of the way again. Shadow keeps teleporting from every direction around the robot, confusing it in the process. Shadow uses the robot's confusion to his advantage and fires a Chaos Spear at the robot when he got behind it. The energy blast hits the robot, causing it to start losing it's balance. Shadow reappears on the right side of the robot then launches a homing attack on the robots face. The attack successfully makes contact and caused the robot to fall on it's back. Shadow reappears on the ground.

"Game over!" Shadow jumps up in the air. "Chaos Spears!" The brooding hedgehog delivers the final attack by launching multiple Chaos Spears on the downed robot. The energy blasts makes contact and destroys the robot. Shadow lands back on the ground, closes his eyes, and crosses his arms after destroying his robotic foe. "Hmph."

Back with Rouge and Omega. The hammer robot is still struggling to land a single hit on Rouge. The bat girl dodges another one of the robots attacks then she kicks it in the face while it was distracted, stunning it in the process. Rouge chuckles, gets behind the stunned robot, then she launches her drill drive attack on it from behind. The attack pierced through the robot, causing it to explode. Rouge lands back on the ground then brushes herself off. Omega heavily damages the mini gun goliath to the point where it is not able to stand back up. The ultimate E-series robot shows no mercy and begins to deliver the final blow by activating his giant laser canon. He fires at purple laser beam at it and it completely disintegrated the robot. Omega deactivates his laser canon.

"Target eliminated." said Omega.

Omega and Rouge walks up to Shadow then Rouge starts stretching her arms and legs. "Ah. That was a good workout." said Rouge.

Shadow turns and looks at Rouge. "The Chaos Emerald. Where is it?"

Rouge reactivates her treasure scope then flies away with Shadow and Omega following her. The bat picks up the yellow Chaos Emerald's signal then she finds it sitting underwater in a small pond. She picks it up.

"3 to go." Shadow and Omega catches up to Rouge. "Alright, where to next?" Rouge asks Shadow.

"Chemical Plant. Let's go." said Shadow.

Team Dark heads off to the Chemical Plant.

* * *

[Chemical Plant]

Team Dark has arrived to the Chemical Plant. During their search for the blue Chaos Emerald, they had encountered some of doom's robots and easily destroys every single of them. Rouge finds the Chaos Emeralds location. It is sitting on top of a large pole. Rouge flies up to the top of the pole, grabs the Chaos Emerald, then flies back down to Shadow and Omega.

"This makes five." said Rouge.

"Good. Let's head off to Station Square. The last two emeralds are there." said Shadow.

Team Dark starts leaving the Chemical Plant and heads to Station Square. What they don't know is that they're being watched by a couple of Doom soldiers from a distance on top of a building. One of them is using a sniper rifle while the other one is unarmed. The sniper has Omega on his crosshairs.

"Target sighted." He takes out some kind of small device then loads it in the rifle. The Sniper fires his shot and the device successful hits Omega on the back of his head. "Direct hit!" said the Sniper.

The unarmed solider takes out a remote control then chuckles evilly. "This is gonna be fun." Once he activates the controller, Omega suddenly freezes. Shadow and Rouge notice that Omega stopped running with them.

"You okay, Omega?" Rouge asks.

"System not responding. Can't move!" Electricity comes out of Omega's body. Shadow and Rouge looks at their comrade with wide eyes.

"Omega." said Shadow.

"What's wrong?" Rouge asks.

Omega, uncontrollably, starts moving again. "Can't control! Can't control!" The soldiers are using the device to control Omega. They force him to activate his Omega machine gun then aims at Shadow and Rouge.

"Get down!" said Shadow.

Omega opens fire at the duo only for Shadow to grab Rouge then leaps away. Omega's machine gun bullets are chasing after Shadow and Rouge.

"What's gotten into Omega?!" Rouge asks.

"It seems like he's being controlled." said Shadow.

"But how?"

"I don't know." Shadow puts Rouge down on top of a platform. "Stay here." The hedgehog leaps away from Rouge.

"Can't control! Can't control!" said Omega.

Shadow is dodging all of Omega's shots. "Chaos Control!" The hedgehog freezes time. After time is frozen, he searches around Omega's body. He eventually spots the device planted on the back of Omega's head. "What's that?" Shadow grabs the device. As he grabs it, time reverts back to normal, and the device shocks Shadow. "Argh!" Omega turns around and swats Shadow away. He reactivates his machine gun then open fires at Shadow only for the hedgehog to teleport away. He reappears back to Rouge's location. "There's a device planted on the back of his head. Someone's definitely controlling him."

"Have you tried taking it off of him?"

"I tried, but it's equipped with a defense system that shocks anyone who touches it."

"Any other ideas on how to get him back to normal?"

"We'll need to find whoever's controlling him and make them stop."

Back to the two soldiers.

"Hahaha. They can run but they can't hide. Now, that we've got their ally under our control, we got them running scared." said the sniper.

"There's no way they'd want to destroy their precise little toy." said the soldier controlling Omega.

The Sniper thought of something. "Hey! Oh-Oh! Let me see that real quick!"

Looks at his comrade, confused. "What, why?" He asks.

The Sniper snatches the controller away from his partner. "I just want to see something real quick."

The sniper forces Omega to start breakdancing. Shadow and Rouge now looks at Omega in confusion.

"What the-?!" both said.

The sniper is making poor Omega perform dance moves like the dying fish, the disco, and many more breakdancing moves. Rouge snickers at Omega while Shadow looks disturbed at what he's seeing.

"Hey, what are you doing? Give me that!" The other soldier snatches controller away from the Sniper only for the latter to snatch it back from him.

"Oh, come on, just a couple more minutes."

"We're trying to use the robot to eliminate the Hedgehog and the bat girl, not make it dance like a maniac!"

The soldiers are fighting over the controller, trying to snatch it away from each other in the process.

"It'll only take another minute!"

"You fool! Now's not the time for fun and games! Give me that!"

The soldiers fight over the controller is causing Omega to fire multiple of his weapons and dance at the same time. Rouge is recording Omega's embarrassing moment using her phone.

"Rouge, now's our chance to find the person controlling Omega."

"Wait. Just one more minute."

"Rouge!"

"Alright, alright."

Rouge puts away her device and helps Shadow find the soldiers.

"Give it back, you idiot!"

"No!"

The soldier's constant pulling on the controller causes it to break in half. The device stops controlling Omega. The robot now has full control over his body again. Realizing that the controller is destroyed, the soldier growls at his partner.

"RRRRgh! YOU!"

"Whoops."

Then he pins him down and starts choking him. "You! YOU RUINED EVERYTHING!"

"Well, well. What do we have here?" Rouge asks.

The soldier stops choking his partner then the two men turns and looks at Shadow and Rouge in shock. Realizing that they've been spotted, they both starts sweating and laughs nervously. Back to Omega, Shadow lands back on the ground in front of him.

"Omega. Are you alright?" Shadow asks.

"I had no control of my actions." The robot raises his fist in rage. "Who did it?" Omega asks.

Rouge flies down while carrying the soldiers. "Here's your culprits." Rouge drops them on the ground. Omega turns and looks at them with the look of vengence. The two soldiers looks at the angry Omega in fear and laughs nervously. Omega grabs both of them.

* * *

[Outer Space]

Omega threw the soldiers so hard, he sent them flying to outer space. Both of them are screaming as they are flying past asteroids.

* * *

[Chemical Plant]

As Omega looks up at the sky, Rouge comments on his performance.

"That was quite entertaining, by the way. I didn't think you had it in ya, big guy!" Rouge teases Omega.

"Shadow. Rouge." Omega turns his head and upper body around and looks down at his comrades. "Do not speak of this to anyone, or I will make you my _ENEMIES_." After 5 seconds of awkward silence, Omega turns back around. "Resuming mission." Then he walks off.

"Got it recorded?" Shadow asks.

"Oh, yeah." said Rouge as she shows the footage to Shadow.

Rouge puts away her device then the duo follows Omega.

* * *

[Station Square]

In Station Square, the streets is infested with tanks, the cars are destroyed, and the buildings are all damaged. Team Dark appears then starts destroying all the tanks.

"Enemy targets, eliminated." said Omega.

Rouge uses her treasure scope to find the white Chaos Emerald. She points at the direction to the sewer by the entrance to Twinkle Park. "Over there." She flies to the sewer tunnel and Shadow and Omega follows behind. In the tunnels, she finds the white Chaos Emerald sitting up against the wall.

"Only one more left. Time to head to the beach." said Rouge.

* * *

[Emerald Coast]

At Emerald Coast, the place is crawling with guards and robots. Team Dark arrives and begins storming through the enemies. The soldiers and robots are trying their best to take down Team Dark, but they are too powerful for them. Team Dark is searching for the last Chaos Emeralds while fighting the Doom force.

"Rouge. Are you picking up the Emerald's signal?" Shadow asks.

"I've got it! Follow me!"

With Rouge leading, Team dark reaches a small island where it is infested with larger Doom robots.

"Any obstacle who stands in our way will be exterminated!" said Omega.

Team Dark are fighting off against the robots. They eventually defeated them all and Rouge finds the last Chaos Emerald who was sitting behind a large rock.

"All Chaos Emeralds collected. Mission completed." said Omega.

Rouge contacts Knuckles. "Knuckles. We've found and gathered all seven Chaos Emeralds. What should we do now?" Knuckles tells her what their new assignment is now. "Understood. We now have new assignments. We now have to help the others rescue more civilians."

"Hmph. Fine." said Shadow.

"New objective. Rescue civilians." said Omega.

Team Dark leaves Emerald Coast to find and rescue civilians.

[End of Ch.10]


	11. Episode Team Sonic

[Doom Central Command]

2 days has passed since the Phantom Terrorist have declared war on the Resistance. Clyde is sitting in his chair, watching the events happening in the world on the display monitors. Orbot enters the command center and approaches the jackal.

"Sir, it is ready." Orbot asks.

Clyde turns and looks at Orbot with a satisfied look on his face.

* * *

[Doom Manufacturing Center]

Orbot is escorting Clyde to the machine they've been working on for the past couple of days in the manufacturing center. Cubot is standing right in front of it as Orbot and Clyde walks up to him.

"Good afternoon, my lord. We are finished manufacturing Project Titan." said Cubot.

Clyde gazes upon the giant machine and he is impressed with what he's seeing. "Hmm. Not bad, you two. I like how it looks." said Clyde.

"Thank you, sir. Project Titan is designed to absorb any types of energy from alien life forms. It is also capable of draining all life energy of an entire planet. We have been working very hard to make sure that it works properly." said Orbot.

"Have you tested it yet?" Clyde asks.

"Yes, we've found and captured a couple of wisps. We tested it out on one of them and it worked like a charm." said Orbot.

"Would you like for us to test it again?" Cubot asks.

"Yes." said Clyde.

"Bring in the second test subject!" Cubot shouts.

A couple of Doom robots enters the lab holding an innocent white wisp hostage. The wisp is chained up and it is trying to break free but to no avail. Orbot goes up to the machine, flips the switch, and turns it on. A small suction vacuum tube comes out of the machine and aims at the frightened wisp. As the vacuum turns on, it is slowly sucking all of the Wisp's energy out of it's body. The wisp cries in pain as the machine is sucking out it's energy. Hyper-go-on energy is also the Wisp's life source. If a Wisp is drained of all it's energy, it will turn into a nega wisp. After the machine is finished taking all the energy, the color of the Wisp changes from white to violet.. Clyde is wondering what happened to the Wisp.

"Hmm? What happened to it?" Clyde asks.

"The wisp transformed into a nega wisp, sir." said Orbot.

"Nega Wisp?"

"Yes. Whenever a Wisp is drained of their Hyper-go-on energy, a negative version of that energy is formed and they become corrupted."

The Nega Wisp charges at Clyde but it is being pulled back by the chains. The jackal is staring at it unfazed by it's attempt to attack him.

"I see that it became more violent. Well, this isn't what I expected to happen. Wait. Then again." Looks at Orbot. "Orbot. While the Wisps are in this state, can they be controlled?"

"Well, it's possible for the normal Wisps, but their Mother is a different story. Dr. Eggman once drained the mother Wisp's energy and tried to control her when she was in her Nega form, but she was beyond even his control and she went a rampage. Sonic managed to defeat her then she returned back to normal."

"Then how is it possible for her children to be controlled?"

"Despite their change of personalities in their Nega forms, Eggman was still able to force them to help him with his schemes and some were willing to side with Sonic to oppose him."

"Hmm." Clyde uses his powers to try and see if the Nega Wisp can be brainwashed. After struggling to resist, the Wisp gave in and is now under Clyde's control. It stops trying to attack him and just looks at him.

"Oh. It worked." said Cubot.

Clyde is thinking about this. "Hmm. Let's see. So the mother Wisp can't be controled in Nega form but the smaller Wisps can. If the doctor is unable to control her, then it's likely that not even the Phantom Ruby's power can, too. Which would probably make sense due to her being the most powerful of all the Wisps. If I drain her Hyper-go-on energy, she'll wreck havoc on the entire galaxy. I could careless if she destroys her own or other planets, but she could come across and attack the Earth. And I would have to destroy her. But... doing that could be risky. The mother is the reason why the Wisps has such power and they could be connected to her. If she dies, the rest of the Wisps could die, too. The creatures could be of some use to me, so I don't want to waste an opportunity by destroying them all. So, how is this going to work? Hmm..." Clyde thought.

"Sir, is everything alright?" Cubot asks.

After he is done thinking, Clyde smiles in satisfaction. "Yes. Everything's fine. Great job, you two." said Clyde.

"Oh. Thank you, my lord." Orbot and Cubot said.

"Should we start sending it off to outer space?" Cubot asks.

"No, not yet." said Clyde.

"Huh? But why not?" Orbot asks.

"The satellite is now under the Resistance's control. If we send it off to space right now, the Fox boy will likely track it then build something to help them investigate what we've sent off. We're gonna have to do something about that satellite first." said Clyde.

"I have a question, Sir, why didn't you try to destroy the satellite a couple of days ago?" Cubot asks.

"If I did that, they'll just have it repaired then build stronger defenses for it in case if we try to attack it again. And they'll be more prepared for a second attack. In the outpost, they've set up soldiers and their own defense system. They need that satellite to help them track down every prison facility and arsenal factory around the world. They cannot afford to let anything bad happen to it."

"In that case, if we send out some of our stronger forces to their outpost, Sonic and his friends will have no choice but to try and stop them from destroying the satellite. The troops they have over there will need their help." said Orbot.

"Exactly, Orbot. While they're busy fighting, _that's_ where we'll send the Titan to outer space. I want at least 50 robots sent over to their outpost. After you've sent them off, I want you two to get started on building the Wardroids."

"Just robots, Sir? No Soldiers?" Cubot asks.

"All I need is one." smiles evilly. "And I know the perfect man for the job."

* * *

[Central City]

Meanwhile in Central City, Team Sonic and the Avatar is breaking into another one of the Phantom Terrorist's arsenal factories, destroying everything in the process. Doom soldiers, robots, and four Giant robots are fighting with Team Sonic, trying to stop them from destroying the factory.

"You guys are better than the last ones we've fought, I'll give you that. But you're still small time compared to us." said Sonic.

Sonic dodges one of the giant robot's attacks then spin dashes through it's stomach, causing it to explode. Then he uses his light speed attack to take out several soldiers and robots. Tails is cutting down multiple robots using his twin tail attacks, the Avatar is using their burst wispon to take out multiple soldiers, and Knuckles is fighting the last three giant robots using physical force.

"We can't let them destroy this factory. We must defend it with our lives." One of the soldiers said.

Sonic smiles smugly at the soldiers remark. "Heh. Good luck with that." said Sonic.

Despite the soldier's efforts, their no match for the power of teamwork coming from Team Sonic. Knuckles eventually defeats the three robots then moves on with taking out the soldiers.

"NO! HE'S DESTROYED THE GUARDIANS!" One of the soldiers said.

"You darn right, I did! And you're next!" said Knuckles.

"They're too strong! We can't win!" Another soldier said.

After a long battle, Team Sonic has taken out all of the soldiers and robots.

"Nice work, Team, now let's wreck this place!" said Knuckles.

"Alright!" Sonic and Tails said.

Team Sonic begins destroying everything in the factory. The factory is now starting to explode. Team Sonic leaves the factory before they get caught in the explosion. Sonic claps his hands and brushes himself off.

"Did I ever mentioned that doing stuff like this is more fun than I thought?" Sonic asks.

"This isn't all fun and games, Sonic. We need to destroy most of the factories and save and recruit more civilians in the next two days." said Tails.

"Okay, Tails, where's the next arsenal factory located?" Knuckles asks.

Tails takes out his Miles Electric Device. "Okay, the next one is in-" Suddenly, the signal is starting to disrupt to the point where he can't tell where the next factory is located. "What the-?!" said Tails.

"What's wrong, Tails?" Sonic asks.

"It's the signal, it's being disrupted!" said Tails.

"What?! But how?!" Knuckles asks. Knuckles's communicator starts ringing and he answers it. "This is Knuckles; The head captain of the Resistance. What is it?" Knuckles asks.

Over Radio. "Captain Knuckles! This is the leader of the Resistance Outpost defense squad. We're under attack by Doom robots! There's too many of them and they're trying to destroy the satellite! We need backup and we need it right now!"

"Okay, don't worry. Help's on the way." Knuckles hangs up then looks at his teammates. "The outpost is under attack!"

"Not good! We need that satellite. We can't locate the rest of the factories and prisons without it!" said Tails.

Knuckles contacts Silver and Team Chaotix. "Silver. Have you guys made it to the prison facility in Spagonia?"

Over Radio. "Not yet. Is there something wrong?" Silver asks.

"Yes. The Phantom Terrorist has sent out an army to destroy satellite."

"That's not good! We're on our way!" said Silver.

"No, Silver, we can handle this. You just stay focused on your mission. We'll contact you when we're done." said knuckles.

"Are you sure? We can help." said Silver.

"Don't worry, we'll be fine." said Knuckles.

"…Okay, Captain. Just be careful." said Silver.

"Understood." Knuckles hangs up. "Alright, Team, let's move!" said Knuckles.

"- Okay." said Tails.

"- Let's do this!" said Sonic.

Team Sonic and the Avatar dashes off to the Resistance Outpost.

* * *

[Resistance Outpost]

At the Outpost, the Resistance troopers are facing off against the Doom robots. Every one of the troopers are armed with Lightening, Burst, Cube, and hover wispons. However, the robots have force fields, 10 giant robots, laser canons, and they have more manpower than the troopers. Some Resistance troopers manage to take out some robots and even a couple of giants, but due to difference in manpower, the robots were overwhelming the troopers. Some robots even got past the soldiers and are damaging the satellite. Team Sonic finally arrives to the scene. Sonic destroys the robots who are trying to destroy the satellite. The captain of the defense squad approaches Knuckles.

"Captain, thank goodness your hear. We've manage to destroy a few robots, but there was no way could've take them all out on our own." said the Captain.

"You did a good job holding your own, Soldier. Now, let's take them out together." said Knuckles.

"Yes, sir!"

Team Sonic and the Avatar are helping the Outpost Troopers take out the robots. While they are fighting the robots, the replica of the most powerful member of the Jackal Squad; Brawn the Jackal, is floating in the air above the outpost, watching the battle. Clyde calls him from his earpiece.

Over Radio. "So, Sonic and his two closest friends are the ones who showed up, huh? Good. Alright, Brawn, do your stuff." said Clyde.

Phantom Brawn nods his head then flies down to the battle. Brawn's landing makes a big hole in the ground and the dirt flies all around him. The landing catches the attention of Team Sonic.

"What is that?" Tails asks.

As the dirt settles, the team gets a good look at Phantom Brawn.

"Another Jackal?" Sonic asks.

Some of the troopers starts shooting at Phantom Brawn only for the latter to dodge by jumping up in the air. Brawn lands on the roof of the Outpost and he is trying to pick up the satellite.

"The satellite!" Tails shouts.

Sonic leaps up to the building and uses his homing attack to knock Phantom Brawn away from the satellite. The blue hedgehog lands on the roof and looks at the jackal.

"Sorry, buddy, but if you want to destroy this satellite, you're gonna have to go through me first." Sonic charges his spin dash then launches it at Phantom Brawn. The jackal blocks the spin dash the pushes Sonic back. The jackal quickly dashes towards Sonic then punches him in the stomach, knocking the blue hedgehog off the roof. Sonic catches himself and Phantom Brawn jumps off the roof. The replica readied his fighting stance and he is prepared to fight Sonic. Sonic gives the jackal a cocky smile and chuckles. "Hehehe… So, you want to fight me, huh? Alright then, bring it on!" As soon as Sonic and Phantom Brawn begins their battle, Knuckles interferes and stops Sonic from charging at Brawn. "Huh? Hey, what's the big deal, Knuckles?" Sonic asks.

"Sonic. You go help Tails and the Rookie. This guy's mine." said Knuckles.

"Hey, no fair, I called dibs on him!" said Sonic.

"Yeah, well _I'm_ the captain. And as your captain, I order you to go help the others while _I _take this guy down myself." said Knuckles.

"…Hmph. Alright, 'Captain'. Whatever you say." said Sonic.

Sonic dashes off to help the others fight the robots. Knuckles and Phantom Brawn observes one another.

"Judging by the look of you, I say you're the strongest jackal, right?" Phantom Brawn doesn't reply to Knuckles. He just stares at him with a serious expression on his face while still in his fighting stance. "Not much of a talker, huh?" Knuckles smirks at him. "I get it. You want to let your fists do the talking. Very well, then." Knuckles touches his fists together a couple of times then readies his fighting stance. The two fighters glare at each other for a few more seconds then Knuckles shouts to Phantom Brawn: "COME ON!"

The battle begins with the fighters charging at each other. Knuckles lets out a battle yell as he is charging at his opponent while Phantom Brawn remains silent. Knuckles attacks Brawn with a left jab only for the latter to dodge then lands a body shot on the Echidna. The strike was strong enough to send Knuckles through the wall, outside of the outpost. Phantom Brawn follows Knuckles. The echidna lands on the island's ground. Phantom Brawn attempts to land another solid hit on Knuckles while he's down only for the red echidna to move out of the way. Knuckles lands a solid blow to Phantom Brawn's face, but the jackal shakes it off then retaliates back at Knuckles. The two exchanging strike after strike on each other and blocking and dodging each others punches. Phantom Brawn dodges a punch from Knuckles then he grabs him by the leg and begin swinging him around and slamming him down on the ground multiple times. Knuckles manage to recover then kick his Brawn in his face, stunning him in the process. While his opponent is temporarily stunned, Knuckles takes no chances and droves his fist straight into the jackal's stomach, causing him to spit-up and sent him flying through trees. Knuckles chases after Phantom Brawn. After crashing through multiple trees and bushes, Phantom Brawn lands on the beach of the island. He gets up and sees Knuckles going in for another punch. Phantom Brawn puts a cube-shaped barrier around himself to block Knuckles' attack. The Echidna pulls back away from the barrier, and readies his fighting stance. Phantom Brawn drops his barrier then charges at Knuckles. In response, Knuckles attempts to land a punch on Phantom Brawn only for the Jackal to catch it. After catching his fist, Phantom Brawn smirks at Knuckles then he teleports both of them off the island to another location.

* * *

[West side island – Emerald hill zone]

Phantom Brawn transported him and Knuckles to the now ruined West side island's, Emerald hill. They both pulls back from each other then Knuckles looks around and sees that he's on another island.

"Huh?" said Knuckles.

In canon, Knuckles has never been to Emerald hill zone before so he's not sure where he is. While the Echidna drops his guard, Phantom Brawn charges and lands a solid strike on Knuckles in the face, launching him to a nearby palm tree. Knuckles gets up, rubs his face, then growls at his opponent.

"Grrr! Cheap shot!" said Knuckles. Phantom Brawn gives Knuckles a cocky smile then charges at him. Knuckles charges back at Phantom Brawn.

* * *

[Doom HQ]

While Sonic and the gang are battling out with Phantom Brawn and the Doom robots. Clyde is helping some of his soldiers put the Titan inside a rocket ship. They manage to put it inside and close the hatch.

"The machine is now ready to go!" One of the soldiers said.

"Good." Turns to the pilot. "Hey, you."

"Sir?"

Clyde creates a purple cube projectile then gives it to the soldier. "Take this. This is a projectile that can trap it's target. Once the target is inside, they are blocked from using their powers to escape. Use this on the mother Wisp. Now, get in the ship!" Clyde demands.

"Yes, sir."

The pilot enters the ship, activates it, then launches off into space. Clyde starts chuckling.

"Hehehe… Yes." said Clyde.

* * *

[Resistance Outpost]

The rest of Team Sonic and the Outpost troopers are winning the battle against the Doom robots. Sonic is using his light-speed attack, boost ability, spin dash, and homing attack to combat and destroy each of the robots. Tails is using his spin dash, rapid tail attack, and his own homing attack for combat. The Avatar switches to their void wispon to suck their enemies into a void then destroys them.

"Sonic, where'd Knuckles go?" Tails asks.

"He's fighting that jackal guy, but I think he's taking him on outside of the outpost. He'll be fine, though." Sonic turns and looks at the Avatar. "Hey, Buddy, how are you holding up?" Sonic asks them. The Avatar looks at Sonic and gives him a thumbs up for three seconds then they go back into battle. "Alright, everyone, we're winning the fight, don't stop now!" said Sonic.

"Yes, sir." Tails and all of the remaining troops said.

* * *

[Emerald Hill Zone]

Knuckles and Phantom Brawn are still engaging in a serious No-holds-barred battle. Knuckles is more serious now that he's away from his friends and the Resistance troopers. And Brawn is now using the Phantom Ruby's energy to combat Knuckles. Phantom Brawn punches Knuckles in the stomach, causing him to spit-up then he fires an energy blast at him, launching him to a giant rock. Phantom Brawn then charges at the Echidna. While the jackal is in close-range with him, Knuckles quickly punches the ground with enough force to trigger an small volcanic eruption with fireballs coming out of it. The fireballs hits and stuns Phantom Brawn. Once he saw an opening, Knuckles begins a continuous assault of punches on the stunned jackal. His final punch sends Phantom Brawn flying into a rocky wall then he falls down on the ground. Knuckles charges at the downed Phantom Brawn for another punch, but the jackal quickly gets up and teleports out of the way. After realizing that his target vanished, Knuckles looks around to find Brawn.

"Argh! Where'd he go?" Knuckles asks himself. Suddenly, Knuckles hears something. He turns around, looks up in the air, and sees a volley of cube projectiles heading right for him. "Oh, shoot!" Knuckles shouted.

Knuckles moves out of the way of the projectile's range. As Knuckles is running away after dodging a few of the projectiles, hundreds of other projectiles chases after him. Knuckles dodges all of the projectiles then he jumps high up in the air to get to Phantom Brawn. Now the combatants are fighting in the air, dodging and blocking each others attacks in the process. Phantom Brawn grabs Knuckles by his legs throws him back down in the island, causing him to crash hard on the ground. Brawn rushes towards Knuckles while infusing his energy into his right fist. Knuckles gets up and notice that brawn is pursuing him with a punch that's packed with a ton of the Phantom Ruby's energy. Knuckles jumps out of the way of the attack, causing Brawn to punch the ground. The punch was so powerful, that it had enough force to split the entire island in half. The island is now broken by Phantom Brawn's powerful punch. But still, Knuckles ain't backing down.

"Heh! You think that scares me?!"

The Echidna charges full force at Phantom Brawn and the jackal does the same. Phantom Brawn's and Knuckles's fists collided. The sheer force of their clashes causes the island to break apart and lava erupts from the ground. The island has been destroyed by the clash and Knuckles has been blown away by the impact. Phantom Brawn pursues him then launches a barrage of energy blasts at him. Knuckles quickly recovers and dodges most of the blasts by gliding. However, one of the blasts hits him, which caused him to crash land on south island.

* * *

[South Island Beach]

After the crash, Knuckles stands up and Phantom Brawn lands 5 meters away from him. Both of them stop fighting because they are tired. So they're just staring at each other. Knuckles is panting heavily and Phantom Brawn is panting from his nose. Suddenly, Clyde calls Phantom Brawn via earpiece.

Over Radio. "Good work, Brawn. The Titan has been shipped off to space. Your work here is done." said Clyde.

Phantom Brawn nods his head and Knuckles stops panting. "Let's finish this!" Knuckles charges at Phantom Brawn. "YAAAAAAAAAAH!" Phantom Brawn vanishes before Knuckles could land another punch on him. "Huh?" Knuckles looks around to find Brawn but he is nowhere to be seen. "Where'd he go now? Did he just…disappear?" Knuckles asks himself. Tails contacts Knuckles via earpiece.

Over Radio. "Hey, Knuckles, we're looking everywhere for you. Where are you?" Tails asks.

"Tails. I'm on South Island." said Knuckles.

"South Island? How'd you get there?!" Tails asks.

"The Jackal teleported me off the outpost to different islands."

"Did you beat him?" Tails asks.

"He disappeared right before I was about to finish him off. What about you? How's everything going in the Outpost?"

"We've destroyed all of the robots. The satellite and the rest of our soldiers are safe now."

"Great work. Contact Silver and let him know that the Outpost is safe now. I'll get back there in no time." Knuckles hangs up then he gets a call from Amy. "This is Knuckles."

Over Radio. "Hey, Knuckles. It's me Amy." said Amy.

"Amy, what's the problem? How's Zero?" Knuckles asks.

"He's feeling a lot better than before. Have you decided what you'll do with him yet?" Amy asks.

"No, not yet. Why?"

"I think we should let him join the Resistance."

"Amy, you are aware that-"

"I know. What he did was wrong, but he really wants to help save the world now. The Infinite we all knew and hated is long gone. I think we should give Zero a chance."

"I don't know, Amy."

"Why? Shadow, Rouge, and even Omega are our allies and they once helped Eggman. If they can get another chance, why can't Zero?"

Knuckles scratches his head. "Well, Shadow…wasn't as vicious as Infinite was."

"But still, don't you believe that anyone should get a chance to earn your trust?" Amy asks.

Knuckles is thinking about whether letting Zero join the Resistance is a good idea. After he has made his decision, he responds: "I'm on my way back to HQ." then he hangs and contacts Tails. "Hey, Tails, something urgent came up at HQ that needs my attention. You, Sonic, and the Rookie are gonna have to carry on without me for awhile."

"Is everything alright, Knuckles?" Tails asks.

"Everything's fine. I'll catch up with you guys later." He hangs up then walks off.

* * *

[Resistance Infirmary]

Back at the Infirmary, Zero is still laying in bed and he is still depressed. He is looking up at the ceiling, thinking about everything Infinite has done and he recites what Clyde and his other detractors said to him.

"The old me was too weak, too pathetic to remember." said Infinite.

"We all know that you're weak. There's no point in trying to prove otherwise. You're just as guilty of their demise as he is. And Infinite's birth was no one to blame but yourself. Do you really believe that becoming a hero will help you redeem yourself from the lives you took?" said Clyde.

"That name of yours, the name that I gave you, 'Zero', describes everything about you. I called you that, because I predict that when you grow older, you will be nothing. A weak, pathetic, and a worthless man, who'll never amount to anything but be a failure. That's why I called you that!" said Axel.

"Worthless. Don't show your pathetic face around me ever again." said Shadow.

Tears starts coming out of Zero's eyes.

"Still can't face the truth, huh?" said Infinite.

Infinite appears standing right beside Zero. "I told you to leave me alone." said Zero.

"_And_ I told you that I'm not going anywhere. You're such a crybaby, you know that? Face it, Zero, you're never going to be anything more than a failure in life. You had your chance to be somebody, yet you threw it all away for power. Axel was right, you're a failure. Always have, always will."

"Shut up." said Zero.

"You can deny it all you want, child, but you can't change what you are. Ah, that look on your face; that's the look of someone who's slowly giving up hope. The look of pain, sorrow, and sadness, it's delicious."

"I said, go away!" Zero shouts.

Infinite rubs Zero's forehead. "If you want me gone that badly, then you know what you must do." said Infinite.

Closes eyes. "GO AWAY!" Zero shouts.

Infinite suddenly disappears then Zero reopens his eyes. The jackal hears someone open the door so he wipes off the tears from his eyes and sits up. Amy enters the room holding a tray with a hot bowl of soup.

"Hey, I made you some soup." said Amy.

"Um…thanks. You can put it down on the table." said Zero.

Amy places the tray down on the table. "I talked to Knuckles. I think he's going to offer you a chance to join the Resistance."

Turns and looks at Amy in surprise. "Really?"

"Yeah. I told you, you'll be able to get another chance. Aren't you happy?" Amy asks.

Zero gives Amy a false smile and he's trying hard to sound excited. "Uh – Y-Yeah! I'm very excited. Ha-ha. Now, I can uh- get a chance to redeem myself and… make amends with Sonic and the rest of your friends."

"Um…okay. Knuckles will be here soon. So, be ready." said Amy.

The pink hedgehog walks out of the Infirmary. Zero returns to being depressed after she walks out the door. He decided to get out of bed, go up to a mirror on the wall, and look at his reflection. His reflection quickly turns into Infinite, which spooks Zero.

"(Sings) Still here." "HAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Infinite laughs.

* * *

[Resistance Main Headquarters]

Amy is back on her computer and Knuckles enters.

"Hey, Amy, I'm back." Knuckles asks.

"He's still resting in the Infirmary." said Amy.

"Okay, thanks." said Knuckles.

Knuckles goes to the Infirmary to see Zero.

* * *

[Resistance Infirmary]

Knuckles enters the Infirmary and sees Zero sitting on the side of the bed looking down at the floor.

"Getting better, huh?" Knuckles asks.

Zero looks up and sees Knuckles. "You're…Knuckles?" Zero asks.

"That's me." The Echidna walks up to Zero. "I won't forget what Infinite did, but Amy is right, maybe you do deserve a second chance." Knuckles sticks his right hand out attempting to shake Zero's hand. "So whaddya say? You want to join the Resistance?" Knuckles asks.

"…I'm sorry, but no." said Zero.

Knuckles is confused on why Zero now refuses to join. "Huh? Why not?" Knuckles asks.

"I have my reasons. Right now, I just want to go." said Zero.

"Go? Out there?"

"Yes."

"What are you crazy? You can't go, there's tons of soldiers and tanks patrolling out in the streets. If you go out there, you'll be blown to bits!" said Knuckles.

Zero gets off the bed. "I appreciate you healing me. I'll be going now."

Zero is trying to walk out the door only to be stopped by Knuckles. "Hold on there, buddy, you're not going anywhere." said Knuckles.

Zero pushes Knuckles aside. "Out of my way."

Knuckles grabs Zero's shoulder then pushes him back towards the bed. The jackal is close to the table where the hot soup is placed on. "I'm sorry, Zero, but I can't let you go out the—" Zero quickly grabs the bowl of soup then throws it at Knuckles. "ARGH!" The soup burns Knuckles and he shouts in pain. Zero runs out of the door while Knuckles is stunned.

Amy hears Knuckles scream. "Huh? What's going on?!" She gets off her computer then opens the door. She sees Zero as he ran past her. "Zero?!"

"AMY, STOP HIM!" Knuckles shouts.

"ZERO, WAIT!" Amy shouts.

Amy chases after Zero.

* * *

[Sewers]

Zero is running and leaping through the sewers with Amy hot on his tail.

"ZERO! COME BACK!"

"LEAVE ME ALONE!"

Zero is trying to get away from Amy so he runs faster. Amy increases her speed as well in order to try and catch Zero.

"ZERO, STOP! WE CAN HELP YOU!"

"I DON'T DESERVE ANYONE'S HELP!"

* * *

[City]

Zero made it outside then he starts leaping from building to building. Amy leaves the sewer as well but she lost Zero.

"Zero? Where'd he go? Not good." Amy contacts Sonic. "Sonic! Sonic, can you hear me?"

Somewhere else in the city. Sonic, Tails, and the Avatar are standing on top of a building. "Amy? Yes, I can hear you. What's wrong?"

Over Radio. "Zero got out!"

Sonic, Tails, and the Avatar are shocked. "WHAT?!" Sonic and Tails said.

"But how?!" Tails asks.

"I don't know. Knuckles came back to offer him to join us then the next thing I know is that he got pass Knuckles and ran away!"

"Amy, calm down, do you know where he went?" Tails asks.

"I was chasing after him in the sewers, but once he got outside, I lost him. Sonic, you have to find and stop him, I think he's trying to get himself killed!"

In a panic, the Avatar dashes off first to go find Zero. "Buddy!" Sonic and Tails shouts.

"Don't worry, Amy, we'll find him!" said Sonic.

"Buddy, wait up!" Tails shouts.

Sonic and Tails follows the Avatar and all three of them hurries to find Zero before it's too late. Meanwhile with Zero, he is still leaping from the rooftops. He eventually decided to jump down to the ground. The jackal is tired from all that running and jumping that he is sweating and panting heavily. He looks behind and sees that he got away from Amy.

"Phew…lost her." The jackal sits down on the road, waiting for a tank or soldier to find and take his life. While he is waiting, he recites more things Clyde and his hallucinations said to him.

"It's quite tragic to see the ones you love die in front of you. Especially, when they died from your foolish mistakes."

"Why didn't you listen to us, Zero? Why?" Claire asks.

"None of this would've happened if we'd left you to die in the desert." said Scar.

"We trusted you! And you just led us all to our deaths!" said Radar.

"It's your fault that we're dead!" said Ace.

"You really are pathetic. You had your chance to be somebody, yet you threw it all away for power. Axel was right, you're a failure. Always have, always will." said Infinite.

Zero is now crying his eyes out. "I…I…am weak. I..I am pathetic. I…am…worthless." A tank appears and it spots Zero. It points it's canon at the jackal and is about to kill him. Zero closes his eyes and accepts his fate. Suddenly, the Avatar uses their grapple to grab Zero and saves him from being killed by the tank. After the Avatar saved Zero, Sonic and Tails destroys the tank by using their rolling combo. The Avatar places Zero back on a rooftop. The jackal is angry at the Avatar for saving his life.

Angry. "You?! Why'd you do that?"

Sonic and Tails lands in front of Zero and the Avatar.

"Zero." said Tails.

"What the heck were you thinking?" Sonic asks. Zero walks away but Sonic stops him by grabbing his arm. "Hey, wait!"

Zero swipes Sonic's arm away. "Don't touch me! Leave me be!" Zero demands. The jackal tries to walk away again, but Tails flies and lands in front of him.

"Zero, listen to us. This is not the answer!" said Tails.

Zero pushes Tails aside. "Get out of my way!" The Avatar uses their grapple to grab Zero's ankle, causing him to trip and fall. "Whoa!" The jackal is trying to free himself from the grapple hook. "Let go of me! You don't understand!"

"Then help us understand! Please, you don't have to do this!" said Tails.

"I'm no use to you all anymore, and I tried to destroy you. Why should you even care?"

"Because we forgive you!" said Sonic.

"Huh?"

"I mean, no. We won't forget what Infinite did, but you've changed now and you're trying to do good." said Tails.

"Becoming a hero won't make the pain go away. I joined Eggman, I got my family killed, and I've became a monster and tried to destroy the world."

"Family?" Sonic asks.

Zero realizes that he mentioned what happened to his squad. "Darn it!"

"Zero. What happened to the Jackal Squad? Why did you join Eggman? Tell us." Sonic asks.

Zero growls in anger then he calms down. "You want to know something about me, Hedgehog? Fine. I might as well tell you. I was born in a desert outside of a city called 'Grey City'. My mother passed away after giving birth to me and my father blamed me for her demise. He gave me the name 'Zero' because I was destined to be a failure. Zero means nothing and that's what he and everyone else saw me as. My father was a retired bandit who worked for Clyde. When I was twelve, I tried to impress him by stealing items from Grey City's stores and show him what I've stolen in order to win his love. Despite my efforts, he still hated me and I got caught and was sentenced to 3 years in jail. After I've served my sentence, I went back home to confront him and he didn't even notice that I was gone. I couldn't stand him anymore, so I ran away, hoping that I will someday forget about his existence like he forgot about mine. Later after that incident, I came across two members of the Jackal Squad, Ace and Scar the jackal. They took me to meet the others and their leader, Stryker the jackal. Stryker wasn't just my friend, he was my boss and I looked up to him as an Idol and father figure. The other jackals loved and respected Stryker so much for what he did for them that they called him 'The Ultimate Mercenary'. I wanted to be like Stryker. I wanted to be the new Ultimate Mercenary so I can be loved and respected by others around me. And I wanted to be something that doesn't make me feel weak. I manage to complete the initiation and earn the chance to join the Jackal Squad. I trained and worked hard to become a valuable member of the squad. And I considered them my friends and family. Our goal was to steal many valuable items from different cities, so we can earn enough money to make our own empire. Years later after Stryker died, I finally became the new Ultimate Mercenary and the leader of the squad. One of my squad members found Eggman, and we tried to steal all of his technology so we can sell them off for a bounty. That's where I came across the Phantom Ruby. I joined Eggman for three reasons: If we had the Phantom Ruby's power, it'll help us get closer to achieve our goal. I can watch the world be destroyed, and we could also become stronger than ever before. At first, my squad opposed the idea of joining the doctor, but I convince them to follow along, which was the worst mistake I've ever made. One week has passed since joining Eggman, we were assigned to guard the doctor's facility. Everything was fine…until," Zero clenches his teeth in anger. "_he_ showed up. Shadow infiltrated the facility. He destroyed my squad and he only sparred me. Before he left he told me: "Don't show your pathetic face around me ever again.". I failed to avenge my squad, what he said reminded me of my father, and I regret not listening to them ever since. Eggman offered me a chance to get stronger by letting me fuse with the Phantom Ruby prototype. If I didn't go through with the offer, I'll never get the chance to avenge my squad and destroy Shadow. And I'll have to live out the rest of my life as a coward and pathetic man. I didn't want to go through that so I accept the offer, and that's how I became Infinite."

"Why did you want to see the world destroyed at first?" Tails asks.

"I've always hated the world. The world is filled with harsh rules of life, such as the strong survives while the weak dies, serve the strong, or gain nothing in life. Stryker was forced into the life of terrorism, Claire lost her mother and father, Brawn's adopted father was killed in war, he was a victim of a failed experiment and he lost his voice because of it, and he's been in and out of an orphanage when he was a child. Ace, Scar, and Radar ran away from a hideous foster home and they had to steal to survive in the streets while trying to avoid being caught by the cops. When they told me about their past lives, I thought the world is really a lost cause and I thought that it was better off destroyed. Infinite was everything wrong with the world packed into one being and so is Clyde. In this world, the strong will always trample the weak. Why? Because they feel like they can. And that's one of reasons why Clyde chooses to be what he is."

"Zero." said Tails.

"There I told you everything. Now, you understand why I don't deserve to live?" Zero asks Sonic. The hedgehog remains silent. "What, no snarky and sarcastic response? You're not going to say anything?" Sonic is still quiet. Zero uses his claws to cut the Avatar's grappling line off his ankle then he gets up. "Hmph…as I thought. Now, leave me alone." Zero walks away, but Sonic grabs his arm again. "Huh? Let…go."

"Y'know, I actually feel sorry for you." said Sonic.

"Why?" Zero asks.

"At first, I thought you were just some homicidal maniac who teamed up with Eggman without any reason at all. But now I see you as a misguided individual who's just sad, lonely, and is suffering with grief. I don't know Stryker or any of your squad personally, but do you think that they would want you to be miserable over their deaths?"

"What do yo-"

"Answer my question."

"Well, Stryker did kill a lot of people when he was a soldier. And… he…he still wanted to move on and continue to live life."

"Exactly. I don't know what went down with Shadow and your squad and knowing him, I doubt he remembers. But don't you think your boss would want you to stay strong and move on from your mistakes?" Sonic asks.

"Well, he always wanted me to be strong. So…yeah…I think he would…but it's not easy…"

"I think you'll be fine. And regarding this whole 'Strong survives while weak dies', that doesn't seem true to me."

"How would you know? You were born to be the fastest creature in the universe and the earth's defender. Your friends also have powers that no ordinary person has. I'm nothing compared to you," looks at Tails. "even your little fox friend could take me down. You don't know what it's like to feel inferior, how could you possibly know that it's not true?"

"You're right, you and I are different. But you could have something deep inside you that even I don't have. Heck, you probably have advantages over me in some things."

"Like?"

"That's what you'll have to find for yourself." Sonic lets go of Zero's arm. "You're not weak, Zero, and you're not worthless. What you did wasn't right, and you'll have to live with it for the rest of your life, but you standing around here feeling sorry for yourself is not going to help you. We forgive you, but you'll have to forgive yourself." The Avatar walks up to Zero and places their hand on his shoulders. "Buddy?" The Avatar looks back at Sonic and nods their head. "Ah, I get ya. We'll leave you two alone." Sonic walks away. "Come on, Tails, let's get back to HQ."

"Are you sure it's alright to leave them alone, Sonic?" Tails asks.

"They'll be fine. Now, let's go."

Sonic leaps away. Tails looks back at Zero and the Avatar for a few seconds before he follows Sonic.

"You stood by me for all this time. Thank you." Zero said to the Avatar.

* * *

[Underground Resistance HQ]

Sonic and Tails arrives back to HQ. They see Knuckles talking with Amy.

"Hey, guys, we're back." said Sonic.

"Sonic, Tails." Amy notice that the Avatar and Zero are not with them. "Where's Zero?"

"And where's Rookie?" Knuckles asks.

"We stopped Zero. Buddy wanted to stay and look after him. Don't worry, he'll be fine. You alright, Knuckles?" Sonic asks.

"He caught me by surprise, but yeah, I'm alright." said Knuckles.

Suddenly, Silver and Team Chaotix enters the room.

"Silver, Team Chaotix? What are you guys doing back here?" Knuckles asks.

"Sonic, Tails, Knuckles. We didn't expect to see you here, too. Well, now that you're here, we need to talk." said Silver.

[End of Ch.11]


	12. Episode Team Chaotix

[Spagonia]

The chapter begins with Silver and Team Chaotix arriving at Spagonia. To no surprise, the city is half destroyed and the streets are crawling with Tanks. Some of the tanks detects Silver and the Chaotix and starts firing at them. The futuristic hedgehog uses his powers to catch the missiles then throws them back at the Tanks, destroying them.

"Nice shot, Silver." said Charmy.

"Thanks, Charmy. The prison should be up ahead. Come on!" said Silver.

The team storms through more tanks and are heading towards Spagonia's prison facility. After they've destroyed all the tanks in their path, they found the prison.

"There it is. Let's go, boys!" said Vector.

"Yes, sir!" said Charmy.

"Roger." said Espio.

* * *

[Inside the Prison]

Vector breaks down the entrance door and they all entered the facility. The alarms starts ringing and soldiers and robots approaches Silver and the Chaotix.

"INTRUDER ALERT! INTRUDER ALERT!" the alarm said.

"They're one of the members of the Resistance!"

"Stop them! Don't let 'Em through!"

The soldiers and robots starts shooting. The four heroes charges at their enemies.

"Let's get this party started!" said Vector.

Silver and Team Chaotix are tearing down the robots and soldiers. Vector is using his brute strength, Espio is using his ninja tools and fighting style, Charmy is dodging gun-fire and uses his stinger, and Silver is using his Psychokinetic powers to take down the enemies. The robots tried using their barriers to block incoming attacks, but Silver easily breaks through their defenses. More soldiers came in for backup, but even they fell short from the power of the Resistance. After clearing the area, all four of them moves forward. They manage to find the holding cells and starts freeing the captive civilians. Vector uses his strength and Silver uses his Telekinesis to open the cell doors.

"You're free now. Come on, follow us!" said Silver.

The civilians starts cheering now that they are free. More enemy soldiers appears to try and stop their intruders, but they are being overwhelmed. One of the soldiers are calling for backup.

"Come in! Four members of the Resistance are here in Spagonia. They're freeing the civilians and they're too strong for us. We need backup and we need it right NOW!"

Over Radio. "Copy that! We're sending in the Annihilator. Help is on the way!"

"You guys hear that? They're bringing in the Annihilator."

"We heard. Let's just hope it get's hear in time!"

Silver and the gang eventually defeats all the soldiers.

"Area's clear. Let's move!" said Espio.

The heroes are escorting the civilians out of the prison.

* * *

[Spagonia]

Suddenly, a giant death robot is flying in the sky. It is heading to Spagonia to stop Silver and the Chaotix from helping the prisoners escape. The heroes left the prison with the civilians following them. Silver looks up in the sky and sees the Annihilator landing right in front of them. They all stop running and looks at the giant robot. Inside the Annihilator, there is a Doom soldier piloting the robot and he begins scanning Silver, Charmy, Vector, and Espio.

"Primary targets detected. Initiating battle mode!" said the pilot.

The pilot activates the robot's battle mode.

"Everyone! Get back inside, we'll handle this!" Silver demands.

Without hesitation, the civilians went back inside the prison so they can be safe. The robot is armed with lasers, missile launchers, and a large jet pack on it's back.

"Looks like we're not going anywhere as long as thing is still active." said Espio.

Vector cracking his knuckles. "We're just gonna have to tear it down." said Vector.

"Target's locked on! Fire!" The pilot activates the robots missile launcher and fires it at the Chaotix only for Silver to grab the missiles. Silver throws them back at the robot, but it dodges by ascending up in the air. The missiles destroys one of the nearby buildings instead of the robot. While in the air, the annihilator fires it's laser at the heroes only for them to leap out of the way.

"I'll get it!" said Silver.

Silver flies up in the air.

"So, this one has the power of psychokinesis, huh? Hmph. Bring it on!" said the pilot.

The pilot activates the laser canons and fires them at Silver. The hedgehog dodges the lasers then fires his Physic Knives at the robot only for it to dodge them. Silver uses his own boost ability and charges at the robot. The pilot activates the robots shield and blocks Silvers attack. While the Hedgehog is stunned, the robot punches him, sending him to crash back on the ground.

"Silver!" Charmy shouts.

The robot fires it's missiles at Team Chaotix.

"Watch out!" Vector shouts.

All three of them jump out of the way before the missiles hit them. Espio lands on top of a building then he observes the robot. Silver gets back up then uses his Psychokinesis to grab all of the nearby large pieces of rubble then throws it at the robot.

"Hehe. This is too easy." said the Pilot.

The pilot activates the barrier again to block Silver's attack. What the pilot doesn't know is that Espio figures out how the barrier is being formed. There is a small purple power generator on the center of the robot's back. The generator is what's causing the robot to use it's shield and it's ability to fly.

"That's it!" said Espio.

The robot drops it's barrier then fires it's laser at Silver only for the Hedgehog to dodge by teleporting away.

"Ho-ho! Is that the best you've got? What a joke!" said the pilot.

Silver reappears in front of Charmy and Vector then Espio lands right next to Silver. "Hey, I've discovered something."

"What is it, Espio?" Silver asks.

"There is a power source on the robot's back that is causing it to use it's barrier. And I think it's also the reason behind why the robot is able to fly."

Charmy notice that the robot fires it's missiles again. "Incoming!" Charmy shouts.

Everyone jumps out of the way of the missiles' range.

While in the air. "We're gonna have to destroy the generator in order to take this thing down." said Espio.

"So, what's the plan?" Vector asks Espio.

"I can get behind it and destroy the power source, but I'll need you and Silver to keep it distracted." Looks at Charmy. "Charmy, while Silver and Vector are distracting it, I need you to fly me up and throw me towards the robot from behind."

"Sounds like a plan. Alright, Vector, let's do this!" said Silver.

"Alright!" said Vector.

They all split up from each other. Silver grabs multiple rocks and nearby destroy vehicles then throws them at the robot. Vector does the same except he's using his strength. The robot put's up it's barrier again.

"Hey, I can do this all day!" said the pilot. The robot drops it's barrier again then fires it's lasers at Vector and Silver only for the latters to dodge. Vector grabs more vehicles then tosses them at the robot while Silver uses his Psychic Knives. The robot reactivates it's barrier again. "Clearly, what you're doing is not working!" The pilot then realizes that Espio and Charmy are not with Silver and Vector. He's looking around to locate them. "Wait. Where'd the other two-"

"Hey, you big dummy!" Charmy shouts.

"What the-?" The pilot finds Charmy flying right beside the robot.

The bee blows a raspberry and starts making faces at him. "NA – NA – NANA – NA! BLAAAAAAH!"

Charmy angers the pilot. "What?! Why, you-" Suddenly, the barrier is down and the jet pack is turning off. "WHAT THE-?!"

"EMERGENCY! EMERGENCY! JET PACK AND SHIELD GENERATOR HAS BEEN DESTROYED!"

"What? BUT HOW?!" Espio reveals himself to the pilot while he is on the cockpit. "HUH?!" The Chameleon gives the pilot a smug look, chuckles, then jumps off. The jet pack stops working. Now, the robot is falling down. "NO!" The robot crashes down on the ground.

"Now's our chance!" said Silver.

"Get him!" Charmy shouts.

"NO! I'm not finished, yet!" The pilot activates the lasers, aims them at Silver and Team Chaotix, then fires them. Silver grabs Team Chaotix then he ascends up in the air while holding them, saving himself and them from enemy fire. After dodging the laser, Silver puts the trio down then they all charge at the robot. The enemy activates the missiles then fires them only for Silver to grab them then throws them back at the robot. "NO!" The missiles hits the robot causing it to malfunction.

"SYSTEM MALFUNCTION! SYSTEM MALFUNCTION!" The robot is on the verge of being destroyed.

"Come on, boys, let's finish him off!" said Vector.

Silver and the Chaotix begin tearing through the Annihilator. Silver uses his psychic knife to destroy the robot's lasers, Vector and Charmy are destroying the legs, and Espio is taking out the missile launchers. After destroying parts of the robot, the Annihilator's system has been shutdown and it tumbles down on the ground.

"Yeah! We did it!" said Charmy.

"Good job, boys." said Vector.

Suddenly, Tails contacts Silver.

Over Radio. "Hey, Silver, the robots has been destroyed. The tower is safe now." said Tails.

"Awesome, Tails. Where is the next prison located?" Silver asks.

"Hmm…let's see. Ah, there is one located in Frog Forest. Be careful, you never know what kind of soldiers and robots are there." said Tails.

"Thanks Tails." said Silver.

The pilot breaks out of the cockpit and he is on the verge of disappearing. "B-But how did you… beat me?" He asks.

"I realized that the source of your barrier and rockets where placed on the robot's back. While Silver and Vector had you distracted, Charmy and I kept out of your sight then he helped me get to that power source. That's how." said Espio.

The pilot smiles evilly. "Hmph. Not bad. You may have freed more civilians, but you're still going to lose in the end."

"Oh, really? That's what you think." said Silver.

"Oh, I don't think. I know. The Phantom Terrorist has the power to bring you all down. There's a reason why he wanted to beat you in war, y'know."

"What're you talking about?" Espio asks.

"Hehehe. You'll find out soon enough."

The pilot vanishes.

"He's gone." said Charmy.

Silver recites what Zero said to Sonic and the Resistance about Clyde.("It may seem like he just want to kill you all in a fair battle, but he always got something else up his sleeves.")

"Come on, boys, let's back to work." said Vector.

"Alright, boss." said Charmy.

"Roger." said Espio.

Team Chaotix turns around to go get the civilians while Silver is lost in thought.

"Area's cleared. It's safe to come out now." Espio said to the prisoners. The civilians cheered for their heroes. Espio noticed that Silver is still standing there. "Silver, it's time to go."

"Huh? Oh – Yeah, you're right." said Silver. Silver and the Chaotix are escorting the civilians back to HQ. Espio noticed that Silver looks weary about something. "Hey, Silver, is there a problem?" Espio asks.

"Yeah. I think something bad is going to happen." said Silver.

"What? What makes you think that, Silver?" Vector asks.

"You remember what Zero said about the Phantom Terrorist before we left the Infirmary?" Silver asks.

"Come to think of it, yes I do remember." said Espio.

"That soldier said that there's a reason why he wanted to call war upon us. If he really wanted us dead, why did he refuse to send out his army to destroy us when he found out our hideout?" Silver asks.

"You're right, that is strange, indeed." said Espio.

"I think we should find out what the Terrorist is planning." said Vector.

"But how, Vector?" Charmy asks.

"Yeah, Doom city is crawling with guards and the Phantom Terrorist is there. Even with my ninja skills, there's no guarantee that we can go there to find out what he's up to without getting detected." Said Espio.

"Wait. Did Tails ever bring back that little drone he used to hack the satellite's system?" Vector asks.

"I think he did." said Silver.

"Good. Then maybe Amy can control that drone since she's also good with technical stuff. We can use it to infiltrate the Phantom Terrorist's headquarters and find out what he's planning." said Vector.

* * *

[Underground Resistance HQ]

Sonic and Tails arrives back to HQ. They see Knuckles talking with Amy.

"Hey, guys, we're back." said Sonic.

"Sonic, Tails." Amy notice that the Avatar and Zero are not with them. "Where's Zero?"

"And where's Rookie?" Knuckles asks.

"We stopped Zero. Buddy wanted to stay and look after him. Don't worry, he'll be fine. You alright, Knuckles?" Sonic asks.

"He caught me by surprise, but yeah, I'm alright." said Knuckles.

Suddenly, Silver and Team Chaotix enters the room.

"Silver, Team Chaotix? What are you guys doing back here?" Knuckles asks.

"Sonic, Tails, Knuckles. We didn't expect to see you here, too. Well, now that you're here, we need to talk." said Silver.

Silver explains everything he wanted to talk about to Team Sonic and Amy.

"You think that something bad is going to happen?" Amy asks.

"Yes. I have a feeling that the Phantom Terrorist is planning something awful." said Silver.

"And you guys want to find a way to infiltrate Doom City to find out what he's up to?" Sonic asks.

"Yes. Finding useful information is what we do best." said Vector.

"Tails, we need that drone you used for the satellite to infiltrate the Phantom terrorist's base. Since it's so small, it has a better chance to get in there without being noticed. Do you still have it?" Espio asks.

"Of course I do. I didn't think that we'll need to use it again, But I still kept it just in case."

"Good thinking, Tails. Where'd you put it?" Sonic asks.

"It's in the mechanic room, I'll go get it." Tails leaves to go get the spy drone.

* * *

[Doom City]

In Doom City, the soldiers are still forcing innocent people to do slave work. They are forcing them to build statues of the Phantom Terrorist in the town square and build more buildings. Tails's spy drone enters the city. From HQ, Sonic and the gang are disgusted of how the civilians are being treated.

Over Radio. "This is awful. He's making these people work like slaves." said Amy.

Over Radio. "I swear on my life, we'll make him pay for this!" said Knuckles with anger in his voice.

From a distance, the drone here's a soldier screaming at a tired slave.

"Hey! Who told you to stop?!" The soldier takes out his whip and lashes the slave, causing him to yelp in pain. "GET BACK TO WORK OR ELSE!"

"Y-Yes, sir, I-I'm sorry…"

Over Radio. "We've gotta stop these guys." said Tails.

Over Radio. "Don't worry, Tails, we will. Now, where's his headquarters?" Sonic asks.

Over Radio. "I think the tallest building is the place. Try there, Tails." said Amy.

The spy drone enters the tallest building in Doom City.

* * *

[Doom HQ]

The Spy drone is flying inside the enemy's headquarters.

Over Radio. "Looks like we've found it." said Espio.

Over Radio. "Okay, all we need to do is find out what the Phantom Terrorist is planning." said Vector.

While searching around the place, the gang sees that there is a group of soldiers entering a room.

Over Radio. "Huh? What's going on here? What are all these soldiers doing?" Amy asks.

Over Radio. "Only one way to find out, Amy." said Sonic.

The drone enters the room without causing any attention.

* * *

[Briefing Center]

Inside the room, there is a stage with one of the soldiers standing on it, there is a large screen monitor behind him, and there is a lot of chairs standing in front of the stage.

Over Radio. "Is this some kind of show or something?" Charmy asks.

Over Radio. "Hush, Charmy." said Vector.

On stage, the soldier gets a call from the Phantom Terrorist while the others are taking their seats.

"Yes, sir?"

Over Radio. "They're here." said Clyde.

"Got it." The soldier hangs up and begins the briefing. "Quiet!" The soldiers stops talking to each other and are now paying attention to their leader. "Now, time to begin the briefing." He turns on the monitor and there's a picture of Sonic on it. "Now as you all know, this is one of the strongest members of the Resistance… Sonic the Hedgehog. The fastest creature in the world. This guy is so fast, that he is able to dodge bullets and lasers; even at close range." The monitor slides to another picture where Team Sonic is destroying robots in the city. "Him and his team are physically strong enough to destroy robots with ease. Our leader, the Phantom Terrorist, has designed the perfect robots that are capable of taking down the Resistance." Slides to a picture of the same robot Silver and Team Chaotix destroyed: The Annihilator. "This one here is the Annihilator."

Over Radio. "That's the same rob-"

Over Radio. "Charmy." Said Vector.

Over Radio. "Sorry." said Charmy.

"The Annihilator is equipped with a barrier that is capable of deflecting even Sonic's strongest physical attacks. It's also equipped with laser canons, missile launchers, and it even has a built-in jet pack." Slides to the next picture. It's the same robots Team Dark has already destroyed: The Goliath. "Next one is the goliath. There are three types of these robots: The Hammer Goliath, The Gun Goliath, and The Static Goliath. These robots are designed to wipe out the Resistance's weaker forces and can even give the stronger ones some trouble to take down. The Hammer Goliath's weapon is strong enough to create large holes in the ground. This robot is more use for offense. The Gun Goliath is armed with a minigun that has infinite ammo. For defense, it is equipped with a barrier, in case for incoming missiles. And finally, the Static Goliath has the ability produce static electricity that carries over 1,000 volts. Like the Gun Goliath, it can set up a barrier for defense, however, the Static Goliath's shield can withstand more powerful attacks. Their bodies are capable of withstanding even Sonic's charging attacks, so it's not going to be easy for the Resistance to take down these robots."

"Heh, with these guys on our side, Sonic and his squad are going down!"

"Yeah! They don't stand a chance."

"Don't get cocky, we don't know what they've got planned for us. Now, time to go over our tactics." The next slide shows the small Doom robots defense against the Resistance. "The first generation Doom robots are equipped with barriers themselves that can temporarily block Sonic and his friend's attacks. At close range, the robots could give them the element of surprise and shoot them down. But remember, Sonic is fast enough to dodge even at close range. His friends could, too, even though they're not nearly as fast as he is. The Phantom Terrorist has come with the second generation of these models. The new models are have the features of the older models, but what's new is that they have a hidden stun weapon that is for close range fire."

"If Sonic can dodge at close range, then what good will that do?"

"Sonic could see the robot's primary weapon and he'll dodge it quickly. With this weapon, it is placed on the center of it's chest and it's small enough to where he won't notice it. Once Sonic or any of his friends tries to attack these robots, they'll turn on their barriers. Once the barriers down, the weapon automatically fires at it's target, stunning them in the process. They'll never see it coming. Once the target is down, _that's_ where it's time to deliver the final blow. No matter how fast they are, when they're caught by surprise, they go down like anyone else." The soldiers starts cheering. "Alright, briefings over. We have two days left before we go into battle. Our goal is to take down the Resistance. Best of luck to everyone, have a nice day."

The soldier turns off the monitor and the soldiers are leaving the room.

Over Radio. "What? That's it?" Sonic asks.

Over Radio. "This is his big plan to defeat us? We've destroyed robots more powerful than that." said Knuckles.

Over Radio. "Maybe we can find more information. How about we go find the Phantom Terrorist's office?" said Silver.

Over Radio. "Okay."

The spy drone leaves the room then goes off to find Clyde's office.

* * *

[Head Office]

After quite a search, the Resistance finds Clyde's office. The door is cracked open and they read the label saying "Head Office".

Over Radio. "Looks like this is it." said Vector.

Inside, the office Orbot and Cubot are having a conversation with Clyde.

"Hello, sir." said Orbot.

"Hello, you two, how are things going?" Clyde asks.

"Why, you're in a good mood today." said Cubot.

Over Radio. "Orbot? Cubot? They're working for the Phantom Terrorist?" Sonic asks.

Over Radio. "He must be controlling them." said Tails.

"Of course, I am. I'm confident that our latest creations will destroy the Resistance. Victory is so close that I can almost taste it." said Clyde.

"You're quite confident in these new robots, sir." said Cubot.

"Are you concerned with the fact that Sonic and the Resistance could have something greater than our newest inventions?" Orbot asks.

"Please, they're technology and brainpower are inferior to ours. They can't possibly have robots superior to ours. This battle will be the most one-sided battle of all time. And I can't wait to see the look on that hedgehog's face when we crush him."

Over Radio. "Wow. He's more full of himself than Eggman." said Sonic.

"By the way, is there something you want from me?" Clyde asks.

"We just want to inform you that the robots are almost completed. That's all." said Orbot.

"Good. Now, I'd like to be alone. So if you two would be so kind…"

"Oh. Yes, sir." Both said.

Orbot and Cubot leaves the office.

Over Radio. "So, that's his plan? I'd expected better." said Sonic.

Over Radio. "Well, I guess that was it. Let's get out of there." said Silver.

The spy drone leaves the office. After it left, Clyde turns around at the door and smiles evilly.

"See you in the next two days… Sonic." said Clyde.

Clyde somehow knew that Sonic and the others were ease dropping on him with the spy drone was there.

[End of Ch.12]


	13. War

[Outer Space, on the upper atmosphere of Planet Wisp]

Outside of Planet Wisp, there is a spaceship floating on the upper atmosphere. One of the Phantom Terrorist's soldiers is sitting inside the ship, calling his boss.

"Sir, I've found the planet. I'm proceeding on with the mission now" He said.

Over Radio. "Good. Remember, after you capture the queen, activate the Titan then get out of there immediately. If you get caught in the vacuum, not only would you vanish, you would also drop the cube and the queen's energy would get drained along with her children. Understood?" Clyde asks.

"Understood. I'll contact you when I'm done." After hanging up, the soldier presses a green button to open the hatch on the bottom of the ship. The Titan is planted on the platform of the hatch. The machine takes out it's large Vacuum then points it at the planet. "Okay. The machine is prepared." He grabs the cube projectile, turns himself invisible, then he teleports out of the ship.

* * *

[Planet Wisp]

Inside Planet Wisp, the planet is full of different types of Wisps flying all over the place. The planet is a lot more beautiful now that Eggman's construction work is gone. The soldier appears on the ground while remaining invisible so he won't get spotted by any Wisps. He looks around and he is amazed on how pretty the planet is.

"Wow, this place is beautiful. Oh, what am I doing? Now's not the time to gawk, I gotta find the queen." The soldier is exploring the planet to find the Mother Wisp while trying not to bump into an Wisp along the way. He soon encounters a large pink Wisp who is watching over her children while they are playing. The soldier has found the Mother Wisp and he looks at her with wide eyes. "Whoa, she's huge!" he thought.

He walks behind her then takes out the cube projectile. Before he throws it at her, he is thinking about the possible outcome of this. "Wait. Perhaps this is not a good idea to trap her out in the open. What if the children starts panicking and leaves the planet to find their mother? Or what if they find out I'm here and start attacking me? Maybe I should wait her out, catch her while the other Wisps are not looking. Or perhaps I should find a way to lure her to an area where there's no other Wisps around then I can nab her. What should I do? Should I just grab her right now or should I do it while the children aren't around? …Oh, to heck with this!" He throws the cube at the Mother Wisp from behind. The projectile touches her and it sucks her inside of it. The Wisps are shocked by what they just saw. The soldier quickly activates the Titan's vacuum from his wrist communicator, grab the projectile, then quickly teleports away.

* * *

[Outer Space, On the upper atmosphere of Planet Wisp]

The soldier reappears back in the ship. The Vacuum begins extracting all the energy of every Wisp in the planet.

* * *

[Planet Wisp]

The Vacuum is draining all of the Wisps Hyper-go-on energy. Everyone of them are slowly turning into Nega-Wisps. After minutes of draining the energy the Vacuum stops on it's own.

"Sir, it's done. The Hyper-go-on energy is ours now."

* * *

[Head Office]

Back in the Phantom Terrorist's office.

"I'm on my way." Clyde opens a dimensional portal then walks inside of it.

[Outer Space, On the upper atmosphere of Planet Wisp]

Inside the ship, a portal opens and Clyde exits out of it. The soldier approaches to him.

"Here's the Queen, sir."

Clyde looks at the frightened Mother Wisp who is trapped inside the cube. "Good work, soldier. Take her back to HQ. I'll take it from here now."

"Yes, sir."

The soldier enters the portal and it closes behind him. "Now, it's time to claim my new pets." Clyde teleports out of the ship.

* * *

[Planet Wisp]

Inside the Planet, all of the Nega-wisps are going wild. Clyde appears on the ground, looks at the wild Wisps, then uses the Phantom Ruby's power to brainwash every last one of them in the planet. After being under Clyde's control, the Nega wisps has calm down and looks at their new master.

"Attention, everyone! For now on, I am your new master. My name is Clyde the Jackal, but as your new leader, you will address me as the Phantom Terrorist. You will follow my orders and you will aid me in destroying a group called, the Resistance." All of the Nega Wisps circles around Clyde. "This battle will be your last, Hedgehog." The jackal begins laughing evilly.

* * *

[City]

Meanwhile, in the city back on Earth, there are a couple of Doom soldiers having a conversation with each other.

"The Resistance only has two days left. I can't wait." said Soldier #1.

"I hear ya. It's going to be glorious."

"If only the leader would let the doctors watch him do something they could not. Their faces would be priceless."

"Oh, don't worry. I'm sure he'll get some of our comrades to set up a TV system in their cell."

"Do you think he'll keep them inside the Pyramid after the war is over?"

"Don't know. That's up to him to decide their fate."

The soldiers walks off. On the rooftops, Zero and the Avatar were ease dropping on the soldier's conversation.

"So, that's where they're keeping the doctors. Inside that pyramid. Come on, I know what Pyramid they're in. Once we find Doctor Eggman, he'll have no choice but to tell us Clyde's weakness. After that, we'll give the information to Sonic and the Resistance."

The Avatar nods their heads then the duo leaps away.

* * *

[Arsenal Pyramid]

Hours later, Zero and the Avatar finally arrives at the Arsenal Pyramid.

"This is it. Come on." said Zero.

The duo enters the pyramid. Inside, The place is still filled with automated inventions that is designed to build different types of doom robots built under Eggman's equipment and technology. The Avatar follows Zero through the inventions. "Hmm…this place hasn't change since the last time I've been here. Clyde must be holding Eggman inside the Prison hallway. Follow me."

* * *

[Prison Hallway]

They both enter the prison hallway and they hear Eggman shouting in pain and soldiers laughing.

"Hit him again! Hit him again!"

Sounds of something hitting Eggman are heard. "Argh! I'll get you all for this!" said Eggman.

"He hasn't learned his lesson. Keep hitting him!"

Zero and the Avatar walk through multiple cell doors till they eventually find the cell where Classic and Modern Eggman are being held in. They see Modern Eggman hanged upside down with a soldier hitting him with a stick like a piñata. Four soldiers and Classic Eggman, who is still chained up against the wall, is watching Modern Eggman get pulverized.

"Ahhh!" Modern Eggman shouts in pain.

The soldiers are laughing at Modern Eggman's pain.

"You won't get away with this!" said Classic Eggman.

"Don't worry, you're next after we're done with him." One of the soldiers said to Classic Eggman.

Zero and the Avatar breaks into the cell.

"What the-?"

Zero somehow found and retrieved his sword and uses it to take out all of the soldiers. After he took them all out, he looks at Modern Eggman with a stern expression. Modern Eggman recognizes Zero.

"What? Zero?"

"Long time no see, Fatso." said Zero.

Modern Eggman also recognizes the Avatar. "And you, you're the one who fought with Sonic against me. What are you doing with someone like him?"

"Hey! Who is this Jackal?" Classic Eggman asks his Modern counterpart.

"He's Infinite."

"What? _He's_ the one you told me about?"

"Yes, I am, and that's not important right now. We want to know the Phantom Terrorist's weakness and you're going to tell us." said Zero.

"Oh? And why should we?" Classic Eggman.

"Because you don't have a choice. He declared war on the Resistance. In order to increase their chances to defeat him, we need to know his weakness. I get that you and Sonic are enemies, but what would you rather do? Help the Resistance take down Doom then you'll get your revenge, or stay here and be tormented for the rest of your life? What's it gonna be?" Zero asks.

Without any other options, Modern and Classic Eggman sighs.

"Very well, we'll tell you. But first, GET ME DOWN!" Zero uses his sword to cut the rope and he releases Modern Eggman. "YAAAAAAAAH! D'OOW!" Modern Eggman fell on his head after Zero cuts him down.

"Now, start talking."

"Clyde is able to harness more power from the Phantom Ruby than I did in my battle with the Resistance. His power is so great, that it's possible he could destroy Time and Space continuum. However, he does have a few weaknesses. Currently, he is suppressing the Phantom Ruby's power because it's much easier to control and there is no reason for him to raise his energy, well, at least not yet anyway. After training for 6 months, he is able to control at least 1 to 50% of his power, but anything higher will cause strain on his body and his stamina will start depleting."

"So the more energy he unleashes, the more strain he'll cause on his body and he'll lose stamina?" said Zero.

"That's correct. And his love for causing harm upon others is arguably greater than Infinite's. At first, he was willing to destroy Sonic without hesitation, now he has decided to keep him alive for some sinister plan he came up with. This abnormal satisfaction is one of the reasons why Infinite lost to Sonic."

"Plan? What plan?" Zero asks.

"We don't know. He didn't tell us what it was." said Classic Eggman.

"I see. Wait, you said that there was no need for him to use more of the Phantom Ruby's power. But what do you mean by 'not yet'?"

"Well, there's no doubt that Sonic will use the power of the Chaos Emeralds to defeat him."

"Chaos Emeralds? What are these 'Chaos Emeralds'?" Zero asks.

"Like the Phantom Ruby, the Chaos Emeralds has existed for many years. But the difference between the two is that in order to obtain absolute power from them, you must find and combine all seven emeralds. While the Phantom Ruby can give you that without the need of any other gemstone. These emeralds are also tied with the Master Emerald; The largest of the emeralds with power capable of neutralizing the energy of a Chaos Emerald. For many years, Sonic have used all seven of these emeralds to defeat me and many other powerful foe who pose a threat to the entire world." said Modern Eggman.

"However, the Phantom Ruby's power might be able to rival that of the Master Emerald's. When the Sonic of my world used the Chaos Emerald's power to face off with me and my rebellious robots, the hardboiled heavies, the Phantom Ruby was able to snatch the Emeralds out of the hedgehog's body then it sent him to your dimension." said Classic Eggman.

"So, what you're saying that even with these Emeralds there's still a chance that Sonic could still lose?" Zero asks.

"I'm afraid so." said Modern Eggman.

"That's not good. Hey, our Eggman, you said that this Master Emerald can neutralize the energy of the Chaos Emeralds, right?" Zero asks.

"Yes." said Modern Eggman.

"Can it also make them more powerful? Y'know, like an upgrade?" Zero asks,

"Well, we never tried it, but it is possible the Master Emerald can also increase the Chaos Emerald's power. Why?" Classic Eggman asks.

"Just in case if Sonic loses, we're gonna need a backup plan." said Zero.

* * *

[Underground Resistance HQ]

2 days has passed. Today is the day the Resistance will go to war against the Doom corps. All of the Resistance forces are gathered together and they're all armed with their Wispons. Knuckles stands in front of them with Sonic, Tails, Amy, Silver, Team Dark, and Team Chaotix standing behind him.

"Alright, people, this is the day we face off with the Phantom Terrorist and his army. They're waiting for us in the mountaintops. As we all know that some of you might not come back alive. I'm sorry, but it's the harsh reality of going to war. But in the end, I am sure that we'll win this war and take back our world." All of the civilians starts cheering.

* * *

[City]

Sonic and the Resistance are marching out in the city. There are no tanks or soldiers patrolling out in the streets.

"Hmph, seems like the Phantom Terrorist ordered the rest of his soldiers and tanks to return to base." said Shadow.

"Yeah. I've been waiting for weeks to get payback on him."

"Hold on. I'm the one who found and gathered all of the Chaos Emeralds. _I_ will be the one who'll take him down. No one else, and especially, not you." said Shadow.

"I'm sorry, Shadow, but who's the main hero around here again? If anyone's going to take down the final boss, it's going to be me." said Sonic.

"Now's not the time to argue, you two." said Knuckles.

"What? He started it." said Sonic. Suddenly, someone is calling Sonic from his wrist communicator. "Huh? Someone's calling me." Sonic answers it. "Hello?"

Over Radio. "Sonic, it's me." said Zero.

"Zero? Are you alright? Is buddy with you?" Sonic asks.

"We're fine, no need to worry about us. There's something we have to tell you about Clyde." said Zero.

"What is it?" Knuckles asks.

"We've found out that Clyde has a weakness. Currently, he is suppressing his power and there is a reason why. The more power he unleashes past 50%, he'll lose stamina and the Phantom Ruby's energy will start taking a toll on his body. If you manage to force him to use more than half of his power, he'll start slowing down quickly and it will give you an advantage." said Zero.

"So if he goes past 50% of his power, he loses stamina?" Tails asks.

"Yes. And there— A-A-n- " the communication is losing signal.

"Zero? Are you there? Zero?" Sonic asks.

"We must've lost the signal." said Tails.

"Well, at least they're okay. I wonder where did they got that information from." said Amy.

"Well, they did a great job. Now, that I know his weakness, taking him down will be piece of cake!" said Sonic.

* * *

[Mountaintops]

The Resistance has arrived at the Mountaintops. On top of one of the large rocks, a soldier sees the Resistance approaching them from his binoculars with Clyde standing behind him.

"Here they come, sir."

"Perfect."

The Resistance stops marching and they're all standing meters away from the Doom corps. The Resistance troops are armed with Burst, Asteroid, Lightning, Cube, Drill, Hover, and Void Wispons. Team Dark, Team Sonic, Team Chaotix, Silver, and Amy are ready to kick some butt. Doom corps have Tanks, Goliaths, Annihilators, robots, and soldiers. The leader of the Doom army steps up.

"Where is the Phantom Terrorist?" Knuckles asks.

"Our leader will be observing us." He said.

"What, their boss don't want to fight now?" Silver asks.

"No…that's not it." said Shadow.

"We'll give you all the first and last chance. Stand down and surrender."

"And let you guys continue taking over the world? Not a chance. We're going stop you and save the world!" said Knuckles. The Resistance chants.

"If you're willing to throw away your lives, then fine by me. Doom Corps, ATTACK!"

The corps charges at the Resistance. Knuckles raises his hand then shouts: "LET'S GO! CHARGE!"

The Resistance charges back at them with some of them firing their Wispons. The two armies clashed and engage in an all out war. Silver uses his Psychokinetic powers to pick up and throw at tanks at one of the hammer Goliaths. Shadow uses his Chaos Spears to take out a few soldiers and robots. Tails is using his twin tails and spin dash to take out some of the Tanks. Omega is fighting with one of the Annihilators with Knuckles helping him. Amy smashing a couple doom robots using her hammer. Rouge drops some her bombs on some of the soldiers, while they were shooting at her. Team Chaotix is fighting some soldiers and robots. And lastly, Sonic just took out one of the annihilators with his light speed attack. While he is in the air, Sonic sees the Phantom Terrorist watching the battle from on top of one of the mountains.

Sonic smiles arrogantly and chuckles. "Hehe…there you are!" Sonic lands right next to Knuckles who just got finished helping Omega take out the Annihilator. "Knuckles, he's at the top of the mountains."

"Alright, go get him, Sonic!

"Right!"

Sonic dashes off through the Doom army so he can get to Clyde. Shadow noticed that Sonic is running through the army. "Hey!" Shadow tries to go after Sonic only to be stop by one of the Static Goliaths. "You again?!"

* * *

[On top of a mountain]

Clyde is watching over the Resistance's battle against his army. Sonic appears behind him.

"Clyde." Sonic shouts.

"Well, well." Clyde turns around and faces Sonic. "Took ya long enough."

"I've been looking forward to fight you again, but this time you won't beat me so easily." said Sonic.

"It doesn't seem like you've gotten that much stronger since the last time. What makes you think you can possibly beat me on your own?" Clyde asks.

"Watch this." Sonic takes out all seven Chaos Emeralds and they circle around Sonic.

"Hmm?"

Sonic absorbs the Chaos Emeralds and transforms into Super Sonic with a shout. The hedgehog floats in the air and faces the Phantom Terrorist.

Clyde is amazed at Super Sonic's transformation. "Oh? What is this?" Clyde asks.

"Hehehe… This is Super Sonic. A transformation that absorbs the power of the seven Chaos Emeralds." said Super Sonic.

"Chaos Emeralds, huh? So, there are more powerful gemstones that lives in this world." said Clyde.

"Yep, that's right." Super Sonic said while rubbing his nose.

"Interesting. I wonder which ones are more powerful. The Phantom Ruby or these Chaos Emeralds?"

"Heh, only one way to find out. Come on, Clyde, let's do this!"

"As you wish. Come!"

Kicking the ground, Clyde ascends up in the air. Super Sonic pursues the Jackal.

* * *

[Outer Space]

Clyde and Super Sonic leaves the Earth, taking their battle to Outer Space. Clyde flies past multiple planets and stars with Super Sonic hot on his tail. Super Sonic charges his arrow of light technique then launches it Clyde. After dodging the attack without much problem, Clyde decided to start fighting back. Due to Super Sonic leaving an opening after his attack, Clyde lands a clean blow on him. Super Sonic was blown away, but he recovers and moves in for a counterattack on Clyde. Super Sonic hits Clyde in the stomach, causing him to be blown away, but then Clyde recovers then goes for a counterattack as well. The two powerful beings engage in a fierce battle with each other. A fierce clash of attacks concludes with Sonic's spin dash, gazed into Clyde's stomach. After the hedgehog launched the Jackal into a large asteroid, He charges another spin dash and launches it directly at Clyde. Clyde gets up and sees Super Sonic charging at him with a spin dash, forcing him to teleport out of the way. After missing his target, Super Sonic splits the asteroid in half with ease. Super Sonic and Clyde are smiling arrogantly at each other as the ferocious battle continued. Clyde launches a barrage of cube projectiles at Super Sonic only for the latter to dodge them without much trouble.

They both clashed again with Super Sonic gaining the slight upper hand. Sonic's punch connects to Clyde's face and the Jackal is sent flying. Sonic attacks Clyde with a kick only for the latter to teleport away then counterattacks Super Sonic, blowing him away. Realizing that he won't beat Sonic like this, Clyde decides to raise his power as the sounds of the Phantom Ruby grows louder. After unleashing a tremendous amount of energy, Clyde's fur started changing from brown with black stripes to pure Gray, his eyes have turned from red to violet, and purple aura is surrounding him. Super Sonic rushes in without hesitation then throws a punch at Clyde only for the latter to block it. The jackal clenches his right fist and drives it into Super Sonic's stomach then lands a solid uppercut on the stunned hedgehog. Clyde ascends then kicks Super Sonic in the face, launching him through multiple asteroids until he crashes into a star. While keeping his distance from his opponent, the Phantom Terrorist charges an energy beam from the Phantom Ruby on his chest then fires it at Super Sonic.

"Uh Oh!" said Super Sonic.

Super Sonic reflects the energy blast back at Clyde with a barrier created by opening both of his hands. Clyde is hit by the blast. As the jackal is being blown away, Super Sonic teleports behind him then delivers a spinning kick on his back. Super Sonic gets more serious and raises his energy. After catching himself, Clyde rushes towards Super Sonic. In a close range fight, Clyde seems like he's having trouble keeping up with the powered up Super Sonic's movements as the hedgehog dodges and counters most of his attacks. After dodging another one of the striker from his enemy, Super Sonic lands a blow on Clyde's stomach, then he proceeds to land a solid kick on the jackal. Clyde is sent flying into Mars and Super Sonic chases after him.

* * *

[Mars]

Inside Planet Mars, Clyde crashes into the ground. As he gets up, he is met with Super Sonic attacking him. Left with no time to dodge or counterattack, Clyde received two blows from Super Sonic, followed by three more that drove his body straight towards the ground. Clyde decided to unleash even more power from the Phantom Ruby then charges at Super Sonic. The tides of the battle is starting to change with the Phantom Terrorist now getting the upper hand over Super Sonic. The hedgehog charges his more powerful light-speed attack then fires it at Clyde. The jackal is now able to keep up with the Hedgehog again as he managed to counter the light-speed attack. Clyde grabs Super Sonic's leg then throws him into a giant boulder. Clyde then fires a power energy beam at Super Sonic while he's down. Super Sonic shouts in pain as a massive explosion engulfs him after he gets hit with the blast. The battle stops for a moment and Clyde starts smiling.

"Phew…impressive." Clyde thought. Super Sonic blows away the smoke that was engulfing him. He has several bruises on him after taking that massive attack. The Phantom Ruby is powerful enough to sheer through Super Sonic's invulnerability. The hedgehog looks at his enemy with frustration. "Had enough?" Clyde asks.

"Not a chance!" said Super Sonic.

"That power of yours is incredible, Hedgehog. You actually forced me to use 40% of my power." Said Clyde.

"I'll give you a chance, Clyde."

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"Quit playing dumb, you know what I'm talking about. What you're doing is wrong, but I don't believe it's too late for you to change. If you give up now, this'll all be over."

Clyde laughs at Sonic. "Hahahahaha! Why should I? I've been wanting this life since I was a boy. I have the world in my hands and I can do whatever I want. Why would I want to give it up all up?"

"But you're hurting innocent people!"

"So? They're weaklings. Their lives mean nothing to me. In this world, the strong always tramples the weak. It's been that way since the beginning of time, my friend."

"That's nonsense and you know it! No matter how strong you are, you have no right to take nor ruin other people's lives."

"That's where you're wrong, my friend. With this power, I'm a god to them. Which means that I have every right to past judgement and make the decisions to whether they live or die. Why? Because I am above them. Inferior life forms should always serve their superior. If they disobey, fail, or try to oppose me, they'll be punished and eliminated, without question."

"I've been fighting evil for as long as I can remember. Out of all the villains I've faced in my life, you pal, are the worst!"

"Nice of you to say, Hedgehog. Now, shall we continue our battle?"

"Yes, and whatever it takes, I'm going to stop you."

"And you'll die trying."

Super Sonic and the Phantom Terrorist continue their battle as they charge at each other while shouting.

* * *

[Mountaintop]

Meanwhile, back on Earth. The Resistance are still engaging war with the Doom corps. Neither side is winning the battle, however. Knuckles and Tails are working together against one of the Gun Goliaths.

"This is tense! You okay, Knuckles?" Tails asks.

"Just fine, Tails, and I'll be better once we win this war. Everyone, keep fighting! Don't give up!" said Knuckles.

* * *

[Outer Space]

Super Sonic and Clyde are back in space. Clyde seems like he now has the upper hand over Super Sonic as he is dodging most of his strikes with ease. The jackal lands a solid kick on Super Sonic, causing him to blown away. After catching himself mid-air, Sonic charges his arrow of light attack then launches at him. Clyde creates a barrier by opening his right hand and it reflects Sonic's attack, knocking him away. While Sonic was being blown away, Clyde launches countless energy blasts at him. Super Sonic didn't have time to block nor dodge the blasts, so he was hit by ever single one of them. After crashing into a large asteroid, Super Sonic get's up and fires multiple energy blast at Clyde. The jackal easily dodges them then dashes instantly towards Super Sonic with a kick. As Sonic is being blown away, he launches a large energy beam at Clyde only for him to easily dodge it. The Jackal fires an energy blast of his own. With an attempt to block it, Super Sonic sets up a barrier around himself, however, the blast was able to blow away Sonic and eventually break through the barrier. The blast is pushing Super Sonic back to planet Earth.

* * *

[Mountaintops]

The blast lands back on top of a mountain and it explodes on impact. After the dust settled, Super Sonic is on the ground, struggling to get up. Clyde slowly flies down to Super Sonic's location, but he is panting heavily. After catching his breathe, Clyde smiles as he realized that he won the battle. He powers back down to his heavily suppressed state. His eyes and fur turns back to normal. Super Sonic stands back up, but Clyde grabs him by the neck then lifts him up in the air.

"That was a good fight, Sonic, but in the end, the strongest comes out on top."

Clyde places his left on hand on Super Sonic's stomach, and uses his energy to snatch the Chaos Emeralds out of his body. Sonic is now reverted back to normal.

"No." said Sonic weakly.

Clyde decided to put Sonic down and gazes upon all seven Chaos Emeralds who is entrapped by the Phantom Ruby's energy. "So these are the seven Chaos Emeralds. I think I'll keep them, they could be useful to me in the future." He then looks back at that the war between Doom and the Resistance. "I want to show you something. Watch this." Clyde contacts Doom HQ. "This is the Phantom Terrorist. Activate the Wardroids and bring out the Nega Wisps."

Over Radio. "Roger."

Sonic looks at Clyde with wide-eyes. "Wardroids? Nega Wisps?!"

* * *

[Doom HQ]

Back at the HQ, an army of strange robots awakens, then flies out of Doom city.

* * *

[Mountaintops, above the battleground]

Multiple aircrafts appears. Each one of them are carrying giant capsules with a ton of Nega Wisps inside them. The aircrafts drops the capsules down on the ground. The impact breaks open the capsules, releasing the Nega Wisps. The army of Wisps appears in the battlefield and is flying around all over the place.

"What the heck is going on here?!" Vector asks.

"It's the Wisps! And they're in their Nega forms!" said Tails.

"But how?!" Knuckles asks.

The Nega wisps enters inside every Doom robot, including the Goliaths and Annihilators. The robots are now more powerful than before now that they have the Nega Wisps powers. The tides of the battle are starting to change as the Resistance are now being overwhelmed by the powered up robots.

"Oh no! This is bad!" Silver shouts.

"The Wisps. They're giving the robots more power!" said Rouge.

"But why? I thought they were on our side?!" Vector asks.

"The Phantom Terrorist must be controlling them!" said Tails.

Suddenly, the mysterious army of Wardroids appear and each one of them targets Sonic's closest allies.

"They sent backup!" Espio shouts.

Knuckles attacks one of the Wardroids but it uses Chaos Control to stop time then it blasted Knuckles away. Tails flies to Knuckles to try and help him.

"Knuckles!" Tails shouts. Another one of the Wardroids uses Psychokinesis to immobilize Tails. "What the? What is th- WHOA!" The robot throws Tails into a group of Resistance troops.

The Wardroids has copied all of Sonic's friends data and they're using it against them. The Resistance is now losing the war against Doom. Sonic looks at the events in horror.

"NO!" Sonic tries to go help his friends, but Clyde stops him by trapping him inside a giant cube projectile.

"I think you should sit back and watch, Sonic." said Clyde.

Sonic looks at Clyde with a scornful expression. "You! What have you done?!"

"I just called in reinforcement, that's all. By the way, I knew what you were trying to do all along."

"What? What are you talking about?" Sonic asks.

Chuckles. "I knew that you used a small spy drone to infiltrate my headquarters."

"Huh…how did you know? And what did you do to the Wisps?" Sonic said in disbelief.

"It all started after I sent three of my jackal minions to try and stop you. I sent Ace to target you and your three friends, I sent Radar to target Shadow and Rouge, and I sent Claire to target Silver and the Chaotix. Before they begin fighting you, I told them to activate drones that is designed to copy their targets moves and data. After you defeated them, all of the drones had successfully copied your data. We've built the ultimate machines that has your data called 'Wardroids'. Here's another thing you should know. After my minion grabbed the bat girl's wings, he planted two devices on them instead of one. After she helped me find your base, I activated both of the devices. While the red one kept you all distracted, the blue one crawled up the ceiling. After our conversation was over, I turned on that device's recorder and It gave me the chance to hear everything you say as long as your in that room. How did I get the Wisps to be under my control? I had Orbot and Cubot build me a device that's capable of draining all the Hyper-go-on energy from every Wisp on their planet. Before I begin to send it off to outer space, I'll need to do something about that satellite so I sent another of my Jackals along with a robot army to destroy or damage it enough to where you fools can't detect it. The distraction was a success, and we shipped it off into space without being detected by you. After that event, I heard Silver and his team come back to the base because he had a feeling that I was planning something. So, he wanted to find a way to infiltrate my base to find out what I'm up to without being detected. Before you snuck into my lair, I set up hidden sensors on the walls and they're designed to track your spy drone's every movement. I ordered some of my men to set up a briefing that goes over the robots that Shadow and Silver's team has already beaten. I did that to make you think I'm just building bigger robots, and I acted like I was confident that they will win to convince you that it was really all I'm planning. After you left, my pilot found Planet Wisp and he successfully kidnap the Mother Wisp, escaped the planet, then turned on the machine and it drained all of their energy. Turning them all into Nega Wisps. I visited the planet and used my power to brainwash all the Nega Wisps to become my pets. I ordered them to give my robots more power so they can help them win the war."

"So this is all a trap?" Sonic asks.

"Yes, and you fell right into it." Clyde looks at the battle again and sees that Sonic's friends are being beaten by the Wardroids and the Resistance is losing the war. "It looks like it's over for the Resistance, but I can call off my army if you say this: I. Give. Up."

Sonic is known for never giving up a fight no matter how bad things get. Clyde is trying to force Sonic to give up and lose hope that he can defeat him and save the world.

"You'll pay for this, Clyde." Sonic vows.

"Okay, how about this?" Clyde brings out the cube projectile that has the Mother Wisp trapped inside of it.

"The Mother Wisp!" The Mother Wisp is being electrocuted inside the cube. She screams in pain and is calling for help. "Stop this, Clyde!"

"I will if you admit defeat and surrender." Sonic growls at Clyde. "Still refusing? Okay then," He then contacts all of the Wardroids. "Attention all Wardroids, destroy them a-AAAAAACK!" Clyde is struck in the back by an unknown laser beam and he is sent far into another mountain. The blast caused him to drop the Chaos Emeralds and the Mother Wisp who is not being electrocuted inside the cube anymore.

"Huh? What the-?" A giant robot that looks like it was created by Eggman appears. "Eggman?"

Over Microphone. "No, it's me." said Zero.

"Zero?"

"Yes. I'll hold him off, you go save your friends." As Zero goes to distract Clyde, Sonic uses the Emeralds to turn back into Super Sonic. "Don't worry, I'll be back." Super Sonic said to the Mother Wisp before he goes off to save his friends. Super Sonic is taking out all of the Wardroids and the every robot and soldier of Doom.

As Clyde gets back up and shakes his head, Zero launches lasers and missiles at him. The jackal keeps firing countless missiles and lasers to keep Clyde pin down while Sonic saves his friends. Super Sonic lands next to Knuckles and Tails who he just saved from the Wardroids.

"Sonic!" Tails and Knuckles said.

"Don't worry, I'll take it from here, you guys get somewhere safe." said Super Sonic.

Super Sonic leaves his two friends to go save everyone else in the Resistance from Doom. Every Robot that Super Sonic destroys, a Nega Wisp comes out and flies away. Back with Zero, he's still trying to keep Clyde pinned down. Despite his efforts, Clyde launches an energy blast at the robots stomach, causing it to start falling to the ground. Zero is trying to get it back up in the air but to no avail. "No. Come on, come on!"

The robot crashes down on the ground and it is now destroyed. Clyde flew down at the robot's cockpit then tears it open. He sees Zero and looks at the latter in surprise. "You again, Zero?" Zero presses a red button that causes him to eject from the robot. After ejecting, rockets comes out from the back of the seat then ignites. Clyde smiles evilly as he watches Zero fly away from him. "First he attacks me, and now he's running away? What a coward. But even still," Clyde opens his right palm at Zero's direction then charges an energy blast. "he's not getting away."

Super Sonic quickly destroyed all of the robots and soldiers and saved the rest of the Resistance. "Phew, that's the last of them."

"HELP! HEEEELP!" Zero shouts.

Super Sonic hears Zero's cry for help. "Huh? Zero?" He looks up in the air and sees Zero flying away without his robot. Then he sees Clyde who is ready to shoot him down. "Oh no!" Super Sonic flies up in the air to save Zero from Clyde.

"Say hi to Stryker for me." said Clyde.

Clyde fires the blast at Zero. Super Sonic manage to catch Zero, but he gets hit by the energy blast, trying to protect Zero. Super Sonic screams in pain as the blast pushes him all the way up in the air. Sonic's screams can no longer be heard and the blast has disappeared. The Resistance are all shocked at what just happened. As the dust settled, Sonic and Zero seemed like they've been incinerated by the blast. Some of the Resistance troop gets on their knees in shock while the others starts crying. Amy gets on her knees and bawls her eyes out.

"Sonic… no, SONIC!" She shouts.

In disbelief. "No, it can't be. Sonic…no." said Knuckles.

Even Shadow is shocked by Sonic and Zero's death. "Sonic. The Chaos Emeralds were not enough? Impossible."

Silver gets on the ground in disbelief. "No…Sonic no…"

Clyde is the only one smiling and he starts chuckling. "Hehehe. He threw away his own life trying to save a weakling like Zero."

Turns are coming out of Tails's eyes as he gets on his knees and looks at the sky. "Sonic? No…" He closes his eyes then screams. "SONIIIIIIIIIIIC!"

[End of Ch.13]


	14. Resistance has fallen

[Mountaintop]

All of the members of the Resistance are shocked and saddened over the deaths of Sonic and Zero.

"I…I didn't expect that this would happen." said Espio.

Charmy starts crying. "WAAAAAAAAH! SONIC!"

Vector gets on his knees. "Oh, no, this is not good."

Even Rouge is shocked by Sonic's death. "Big… blue."

Clyde teleports up in the sky above the Resistance. Some of the troops have lost their will to fight and are now scared of Clyde, while the others looks at him with a scornful look on their faces.

Knuckles growls at Clyde. "Phantom Terrorist!"

"The world's savior…is dead." Sonic's closest friends looks at him with pure anger. "Hey, don't blame me, he was the one who got in the way of that blast. I was going to let him live for a little longer, but… oh well. Now, how am I going to finish you all off? Hmm…Oh, I know."

Clyde unleashes a powerful field of energy around the Resistance. After the energy vanishes, all of the Resistance troops are now brainwashed as their pupils have turned purple and they're staring at Clyde without blinking. Sonic's closest friends and allies are the only ones that are not being brainwashed and they notice that the troops are being controlled.

"Everyone!" Turns to Clyde. "What are you doing to them?!" Knuckles asks.

"ATTACK!" Clyde shouts.

The brainwashed Resistance troops are now attacking each other. Clyde is taking out the Resistance by forcing the troopers to kill each other. Knuckles and the others are trying to stop the troopers from killing each other.

"He's making them attack each other!" said Rogue.

"NO! EVERYONE, STOP! SNAP OUT OF IT!" Knuckles shouts.

The Resistance troopers are taking each other out one-by-one while Clyde is watching the event in satisfaction. Shadow knocks out one of the troops.

"We have to knock them out! It's the only way to stop them!" said Shadow.

"Okay! Tails, everyone! Knock them out, but don't kill them!" said Knuckles.

Knuckles and the others begin knocking out the brainwashed Resistance troops and they're trying not to kill or seriously injure them. Amy is using physical force to knock out the troops instead of her hammer. Silver psycho-kinetically immobilizes five troopers with Rouge, Tails, and the Chaotix knocks out afterwards. Knuckles knocks out two of them while holding back so he won't kill them. Omega is using his stun weapon to knock out the troopers. After a long struggle, the gang manage to knock 70% of the Resistance troops unconscious while the other 28% have been vaporized by Wispon laser fires.

"That's all. Is everyone okay?" Knuckles asks.

Everyone nods their heads and tells Knuckles that they're fine. Clyde starts slowly clapping his hands.

"Well done. You've managed to save most of your soldiers." Stops clapping. "However," Clyde launches a volley of energy beams at the unconscious Resistance troopers. The explosions blows Sonic's friends and allies away and it vaporizes the troops. After they all got up, they all realize that they are now the last remaining members of the Resistance. "in the end, they'll still die."

"NOOO!" Knuckles shouts.

"He took them all out!" said Shadow.

While crying, Amy gets angry, takes out her hammer, then charges at Clyde. "YOU MONSTER!" she shouts.

"Amy!" Tails shouts.

While running. "YOU KILLED SO MANY INNOCENT PEOPLE AND NOW MY SONIC! I'M GOIN TO MAKE YOU PAY FOR WHAT YOU'VE DONE!" Amy jumps up in the air and swings her hammer at Clyde only for him to kick it off of her hands. "No." Clyde grabs Amy by her quills and brings her closer to his face.

"Pathetic." said Clyde.

Clyde fires a small energy blast at Amy. Knocking her out and launching her to a giant rock.

"AMY!" Tails and Knuckles shouts.

Clyde decides to fly down to the ground. "Who's next?"

Knuckles clenches his teeth in rage. "Darn you! RAAAAUGH!" Then he charges at Clyde. Tails and the others are doing the same.

"COME ON!" said Clyde.

Clyde and the remaining Resistance members engage in battle. All of them are trying to defeat the evil jackal, but the latter is easily overpowering them. He knocks Shadow, Silver, and Knuckles away, and blasted Omega away into a boulder. Rouge and Tails attacks the Jackal at the same time but he blocks them with ease. After blocking the attacks, Clyde grabs Tails by his twin tails and he swings him around to knock Rouge away. He then throws the Fox at Team Chaotix who was trying to hit him. Tails crashes into Vector and Espio but Charmy dodges by flying up in the air. Charmy brings out his stinger and attacks Clyde only for the jackal to create a giant fly swatter made out of his energy then swats Charmy away. Silver recovers then charges at Clyde only for the latter to block his attack by grabbing both of his hands. Silver is struggling to push Clyde back.

"Well. Your future doesn't look all that bright, Silver." Said Clyde.

Silver is surprised that Clyde knows about his future. "What?! How did-"

"You can thank Eggman for telling me something about you. I can also read your memories, child. I see that you're so determined to save your future from disaster. After all this is over, I think I'll pay your world a nice little visit."

What Clyde said enraged Silver even more. The hedgehog screams in anger and he throws multiple punches at Clyde, but he is dodging them all with ease. "STAY AWAY FROM MY WORLD!" After dodging all of his punches, the jackal punches Silver in the stomach then proceeds to land a solid kick. Silver is blown away then he crashes into a large rock. Knuckles gets back up then attacks Clyde. The jackal is dodging and blocking all of Knuckles's attacks.

While swinging at Clyde. "You're nothing! Without that Phantom Ruby, anyone of us could beat you to a pulp!" said Knuckles.

"Yeah, well," Clyde knees Knuckles in the stomach, causing the Echidna to spit up. "too bad for you." He then blast Knuckles away. Tails, Vector, and Espio gets up and they saw Knuckles get blasted away.

"Knuckles!" said Tails.

"GET HIM!" Vector shouts.

Everyone, except Amy and Knuckles, gets up and charges at Clyde again. The Jackal decided to end this fight and unleashes a massive explosive wave. Everyone was hit by the blast and they've been blown away. The blast was so powerful that it created a giant crater around Clyde. Outside of the crater, the Resistance are down on the ground, seemingly knocked out from the blast. While on the ground, Shadow opens his eyes and see's Rouge is right next to him and is unconscious.

"Rouge." He then looks at Clyde and clenches his teeth. "You."

"That was fun. Now, where did Knuckles went off too." Before he goes off to find Knuckles, Clyde is suddenly shot at, but the blasts did nothing but got his attention. "What the?" Clyde looks at the direction where the blasts came from and sees a heavily damaged Omega standing up with his laser canon pointed at his enemy.

Shadow looks at Omega. "O…Omega?"

While short circuiting. "Not f-f-f-finished y-yet. Target m-must be e-eliminated."

"How annoying."

Clyde warps up to Omega then fires an energy blast at Omega's stomach. The blast went through Omega.

"OMEGA!" Shadow shouts.

Omega lies down on the ground and is now destroyed. "Worthless piece of junk. Now where was I? huh?" He sees Shadow standing back up. "Shadow?"

"Rouge….Omega…How dare you? How dare you?!" Shadow takes off his inhibitor rings. "I'LL DESTROY YOU!" Shadow unleashes his full power once again, but this time it seems like it is more powerful than it was before. Shadow gazes upon Clyde with pure rage. "You'll pay! YOU WILL PAY!"

"Again with this? Open your eyes, Shadow. You can't defeat me!" Shadow uses Chaos Control to teleport. "Huh?" The hedgehog appears in front of Clyde then lands a solid punch in the face. The jackal is being pushed back and Shadow chases after him. While Clyde is being blown away, Shadow catches up and delivers a barrage of punches on him. The hedgehog then uses his spin dash to knock Clyde into a giant rock. After Clyde crashed into the rock, Shadow launches countless of more powerful Chaos Spears at him. For a final attack, Shadow charges a much larger and more denser energy blast then launches it at Clyde. A massive explosion engulfs Clyde. Knuckles opens his eyes and he felt that massive explosion.

"W-What…was that?" Knuckles asks.

Shadow's massive energy fades away and he starts panting heavily. "Is he-?" After the dust settled, Clyde is completely unharmed by Shadow's attack. The hedgehog gasps as he realized that despite his efforts, he didn't even leave a scratch on Clyde let alone destroy him.

Clyde brushes himself off. "You caught me by surprise there, Shadow. That actually hurt a little. Now…it's my turn." Clyde warps up to Shadow then attacks him with a roundhouse kick launching the hedgehog in the air, and slams him down with his two fists making him fall on the ground. Clyde delivers the final blow to Shadow with another roundhouse kick. Launching the hedgehog into one of the giant boulders. Clyde repeated the exact same combo that Shadow gave Zero back in Mystic Jungle. Before Shadow fell on the ground, Clyde teleports in front of him and grabs him by the throat then pushes him back up against the rock. "Does that combo sound familiar, hedgehog? You did the exact same thing to Zero last year."

Choking. "What…are you…talking about?" Shadow asks.

"Ah. It appears you don't remember. Well, let me help you refresh your memory. One year ago, you infiltrated Eggman's facility in Mystic Jungle before he took over the world. You encountered his jackal defense squad and you killed them but left Zero alive. Your actions is what caused Infinite to exist."

After thinking back, Shadow now remembers the Jackal Squad and how things went down. "Now…I remember…"

Clyde slams Shadow down on the ground. "You destroyed Zero's squad and you did it without a second thought, did you?"

"Argh! They were involved with Eggman and they tried to kill me. I had to do what I had to do. Besides, they knew what they were getting into…"

"Did they? Well, let me tell you this. Before they joined, they didn't know who Eggman was and they didn't know anything about Sonic the hedgehog. How would you know that they knew what they signed up for when it was your first time meeting them? And if they really had the intention to kill you, don't you think they would've outright attacked you on that spot instead of giving you warnings?"

"H-How do you-?"

"I have the ability to read anyone's memories by touching them. And what I'm seeing here is that the Jackal Squad was trying to intimidate you to try to get you to leave the facility. Clearly, they had no intentions of destroying you, but that loudmouth Dr. Eggman was screaming at them to do it. You could have knocked them all out when they got back up, but you chose to destroy them all. I wonder how Maria Robotnik would feel about that." Shadow gets angry at Clyde for mentioning Maria. He gets up and kicks Clyde in the jaw, but all it did was tilt his head. Clyde grabs Shadow's leg then slams him back down on the ground. "You want to destroy me. You want to get revenge on me for what I did to your comrades. I destroyed Omega and I hurt Rouge. The look you gave me after I destroyed that robot was the exact same look Zero gave you after you killed his squad. Omega got back up and he kept trying to kill me. So I had to do what I had to do, right? Y'know, come to think of it, you and Infinite have some things in common."

"I'm nothing like him."

"In terms of personality, yeah, there's a difference. However, you both were motivated by the same thing: Vengence. You wanted to destroy humanity because a soldier gunned down Maria. You wanted to destroy the world to get revenge on mankind for what they did to your friend. Zero chose to fuse with the Phantom Ruby and became Infinite so he could be strong enough to get revenge on you for what you did to his squad. At a cost of his decision, the Phantom Ruby corrupted and turned him into a monster. He was aware of the risk, but if he refused that offer from Eggman, then he would never get the chance to avenge his squad and he would have to live out the rest of his life as a coward. He had a change of heart and tried to atone from his sins by helping Sonic save the world. You had a change of heart once you remembered Maria's promise and helped Sonic save the world, too. You also tried to help Eggman take over the world. Now, look at you. You failed to avenge your comrades like Zero failed to avenge his. So, tell me, how does it feel to be Zero? How does it feel…to be worthless?"

Shadow just looks at Clyde as he takes his hand off of him. The jackal gives Shadow a smug look before teleporting away. Meanwhile, Knuckles is struggling to stand up. That blast really did a number on him. Tails, Espio, Silver and Vector starts opening their eyes. After he managed to stand up, Clyde appears right in front of Knuckles.

"There you are." Knuckles punches Clyde in the stomach, but it did nothing to him. In response, the jackal slaps the Echidna to the ground then stomps on the back of his head. "You're the leader of the Resistance. The battle is over now. So, why don't you do yourself a favor and surrender?"

"Sorry…pal, but...we never give up… no matter what."

"Hmph. You got a strong will, Knuckles, I respect that. The question is: Will you still refuse to give up if I take another one of your friend's life?" Knuckles looks at Clyde in surprise. "Yeah, I think I'll kill another one of your friends."

"I hate you!" said Knuckles.

Clyde takes his foot off of Knuckles. "Now, which one should I pick?" Clyde looks at each one of the wounded members of the Resistance. He sees Tails who is struggling to stand up. "Ah, yes..." Clyde points his finger at Tails. "Him." The fox noticed that Clyde is looking at him. "You Tails, I'll start with you."

"NOOO!" Knuckles quickly gets up and attacks Clyde, but the jackal turns around and kicks Knuckles in the stomach, pushing him back up against the rock.

"I'll spare his life, but all you have to do is surrender. Admit defeat, and I'll let him live." Knuckles opens his eyes and growls at him. "Okay then." Clyde slowly starts walking towards Tails.

"He's just a kid. Leave him alone!" said Knuckles.

"You think I got a problem with that?" Clyde asks Knuckles while walking towards Tails.

Espio and Vector gets up and attacks Clyde only for the jackal to blow them away with an energy burst. Tails is horrified as he sees Clyde walking up to him. Silver gets up and immobilizes Clyde with his Psychic powers.

"TAILS, RUN!" Silver shouts.

Clyde easily breaks out of Silver's powers then he punches him in the jaw. The punch blew Silver away and he hits the ground hard.

"Now, children, wait your turn." said Clyde.

The jackal resumes walking up to Tails. The fox boy is scared out of his mind.

"No. Oh no! He's coming for me! So-" Tails was about to call Sonic for help, but he remembers what happened with Infinite and Chaos.

* * *

[City]

Short flashback of the incident with Chaos.

"Whoa, Chaos! Sonic, help me!" said Tails as he cowers in fear.

* * *

[Mountaintop]

Tails remembers his biggest mistakes during the events of Sonic Forces. He's starting to gain confidence and he's pushing his fear aside.

"No. I won't be afraid… I'm not scared… I'm not scared. Sonic would want me to be strong. I failed him before… I won't do it again. I won't run away… never again!" Tails thought. Tails stands up to Clyde by charging at him.

"NO, TAILS!" Silver shouts.

"TAILS, GET OUT OF THERE!" Knuckles shouts.

While charging at Clyde. "No! I won't run away again! This ends NOW!"

Clyde dodges Tails's punch then he hits him the stomach. After punching Tails, Clyde grabs the fox by the throat, lifts him up in the air, and starts choking him.

"NOO!" Silver, Espio, and Vector gets back up and tries to save Tails from Clyde, but they ended up getting blasted by him again. Knuckles stands back up.

"I told you to wait your turn." Looks back at Tails. "So, you're Sonic's partner in crime, huh?"

"Y…You…don't scare me…"

"You've got guts, child, but where was this Tails when Sonic needed you with Infinite?" Tails looks surprised. "Yes, I know what you did. After Sonic was beaten, you abandoned him. Ran away like a coward. _You_ allowed Sonic to get captured by Eggman. So where was this sudden boost of courage when Sonic was in danger?" Tails is now starting to feel guilty. "I killed a man who acted just like you did in my army days. His comrades were trying there best to stop us when we invaded their city, yet he cowered in fear and didn't help them." Tails kicks Clyde in the chin, but all it did was lift his head up. The jackal then grabs one of the Fox's twin tails, then he swung and slams him down on the ground.

"TAILS!" Vector and Espio shouts.

"YOU MONSTER!" Silver shouts.

"Cowards don't deserve to live. How should I make your death slow and painful? Hmmm…how about I start by removing your tails?" Clyde creates a blade made out of his energy. "Yes. That's a great idea." All Tails can do is cower in fear and watch Clyde cut off his tails.

"NOO! WE SURRENDEEEEER!" Knuckles shouts.

Knuckles shout caught Clyde, Silver, Espio, Vector and Tails's attention. Clyde stops and looks at Knuckles while smiling.

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch that. What did you say?" Clyde asks.

Knuckles gets down on his knees and kneels to the Phantom Terrorist.

"Knuckles…no." said Tails.

"You win. We surrender." Tears starts coming out of the Echidna's eyes. "Just let him go. Please…just let him go."

"Now, was that so hard?" said Clyde.

The jackal puts away his energy blade and lets Tails go. "The Resistance has fallen." Clyde begins laughing evilly. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!"

* * *

[News broadcast]

A local news broadcast has been turned on Television. A Doom robot is giving all of the slaves in Doom city the latest news on large Tv monitors placed on the walls of the buildings.

"We interrupt this program with an important news flash. There was a war that broke out between the Resistance and Doom corporation, taking place in a grey wasteland in the mountaintop. According to the information we've received," The news broadcast shows footage of Team Chaotix, Shadow, Rouge, Knuckles, and Tails handcuffed and they're being escorted by the Phantom Terrorist and a few of his soldiers. "Doom won the war and Sonic the hedgehog is dead." The news shocked the everyone. "The Phantom Terrorist is escorting the last remaining soldiers of the Resistance to the death row prison block and they are set to be executed tomorrow morning. It appears that the Resistance has been defeated and Sonic the hedgehog is no more. Stay tuned for more details."

* * *

[Death Row]

The Phantom Terrorist escorts the last remaining members of the Resistance to their cell. "Enjoy your stay while it last, my friends, because tomorrow will be the day you die. Those handcuffs are designed to keep you from using your powers. So you can't escape." Clyde closes the cell after they all went in.

"Mark my words, Clyde. Someday, someone will rise up and form a new Resistance to take you down." said Knuckles.

"Is that what you think? Well, I got something to say to that, Knuckles. You're execution will be broadcasted on live Tv. The entire world will watch you die. Once they see that footage, it will let them know what will happen to them if they oppose me. All of them will be too afraid to even try it. Your last meals will be here in an hour. See you in the morning everyone." Clyde laughs as he leaves the prison block. Everyone is sad and ashamed that they failed to stop the Phantom Terrorist.

"So... this is really how it ends, huh? I guess my treasure hunting days are over." said Rouge.

"Omega." said Shadow.

"I don't want to die, you guys. Not like this." Charmy said while crying.

Vector and Espio hugs Charmy.

"It's…It's okay, buddy, we're right here with you." said Vector.

"Hey, guys, come on. We can't give up. I mean, I know things are looking bad right now, but we can still find a way out of this. Sonic wouldn't want us to give into despair he would want us t-"

"Tails." said Knuckles.

Looks at Knuckles. "Huh?"

"I'm sorry… but I'm afraid that… we have to face reality."

"What?! Oh, come on, Knuckles, you can't say that. This isn't like you to accept a loss."

"Wake up! 98% of the Resistance have been destroyed, Sonic is dead, and the Chaos Emerald's power was no match for the Phantom Terrorist. We're the last ones standing and look where we are now. Even if we do somehow escape, it wouldn't matter. He's too strong, we just can't win. I know it's not like me to say this, but… he won, we lost. It's over." said Shadow.

"No." looks at Silver. "Silver?" said Tails.

"You all know that I'm an optimist, but I'm sorry, Tails, we're just…no match for him."

Amy is crying. "Sonic."

Tears are starting to come out of Tails's eyes. "Okay then." He sits down on the floor. "I'm sorry, Sonic." said Tails.

* * *

[Cabin]

Meanwhile, Sonic wakes up inside a strange cabin. He sees the Avatar tending to his bruises. Sonic is still alive.

"Huh…? Buddy?" Sonic asks.

The Avatar is excited to see that Sonic is awake. Zero, who is also alive, walks up to Sonic. "It's about time you woke up."

Sonic sits up. "Zero?" looks around. "Where are we? How are we still alive?"

"After Clyde destroyed the robot, I had no choice but to eject…"

* * *

[Mountaintop]

Flashback of what happened after Zero ejected from the robot.

"You again, Zero?" Clyde asks.

Zero presses a red button that causes him to eject from the robot. After ejecting, rockets comes out from the back of the seat then ignites. "I hope this works. HELP! HEEEELP!" Zero shouts.

"Say hi to Stryker for me."

Clyde fires the blast at Zero. Super Sonic manage to catch Zero, but he gets hit by the energy blast, trying to shield the jackal from the blast. Super Sonic screams in pain as the blast pushes him all the way up in the air. Before Super Sonic returns to normal, Zero quickly took out a device and presses a button on it, causing them to teleport away before they get vaporized. They reappear somewhere far away from the battlefield. Zero is completely unharmed due to being shielded by Super Sonic, however, Sonic is knocked out and the Chaos Emeralds left his body, returning him normal. Zero goes up to the passed out Sonic, then he contacts Eggman. "Doctor, I got Sonic away from the battle. I'm sending you our location now."

* * *

[Cabin]

Back to the cabin.

"While you were shielding me from the blast, I took out the teleporting device Eggman gave me. We predicted the possibility that your Super form wouldn't be enough to stop Clyde, so we had to get you out of there before he kills you."

"You saved me when I tried to save you. What about the others?" Sonic asks.

The Avatar walks up to a desk and grabs the television remote then unpause the TV.

"We interrupt this program with an important news flash. There was a war that broke out between the Resistance and Doom corporation taking place in a grey wasteland in the mountaintop. According to the information we've received, Doom won the war and Sonic the hedgehog is dead."

"TAILS! KNUCKLES! EVERYONE!" said Sonic.

"The Phantom Terrorist is escorting the last remaining soldiers of the Resistance to the death row prison block and they are set to be executed tomorrow morning. It appears that the Resistance has been defeated and Sonic the hedgehog is no more. Stay tuned for more details."

The Avatar turns off the TV.

"At that moment, there was nothing I could do for them."

Sonic looks down and he started crying. The Avatar and Zero are surprised that the hedgehog is being emotional.

"I…I couldn't stop him. I had the Emeralds…but I still couldn't beat him. I let them all down…"

"Hey. Don't go failing into despair, Hedgehog. There's still a way we can defeat Clyde."

Sonic wipes the tears from his eyes. "Huh? How?"

Classic and Modern Eggman enters the room. Classic Eggman is carrying a large container. "By traveling to my world to find the Master Emerald." said Classic Eggman.

"Eggman? And…you're the Eggman from another dimension." said Sonic.

"Hello, there, my annoying nemesis. We've decided that we're going to help you bring down the Phantom Terrorist." said Modern Eggman.

Classic Eggman opens the container, revealing all seven Emeralds inside of them.

"The Chaos Emeralds." said Sonic.

"The doctor told me everything about the Chaos Emeralds. It is possible that the Master Emerald can enhance their powers, creating a more powerful version of them. Currently, Clyde thinks we're both dead. In order to avoid being detected, we're going to travel to the other Eggman's dimension and get to the Master Emerald there." said Zero.

"And that's not all. Once we get back to my dimension, we'll get my Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and my robots to help take down Clyde's army. If we play our cards correctly, that Jackal is going down." said Classic Eggman.

Sonic gives Eggman a smug look. "Hehe… I didn't know you cared, Eggman, I'm almost touched." said Sonic.

"Hey, don't think this changes anything, you blue nuisance. I'm only helping you so I can get revenge on that insolent fool for what he's done to me. Nothing more."

"Yeah, whatever, Egghead."

Zero looks at the Avatar. "He's back." The Avatar nods their head in agreement.

"Alright then, everyone, I have friends and a world to save. So lets get going." said Sonic.

Everyone chants in agreement.

[End of Ch.14]

**Message:**

**Hello, everyone, i'm here to tell you that the next chapter will be the final chapter of the story. I really appreciate you guys for reading Sonic Forces Chapter 2's story. I know it's not as good as Memories of Infinite's past's storyline, but I still tried my best to make it a good serious Sonic story. After this, I won't be making anymore fanfics, because I have been accepted into a university and i'll be going off in the next couple of months. I'm majoring in scriptwriting because i want to become a professional writer and get hired by Sega to become a new writer for Sonic someday. I want to go beyond just a fanfic writer. Before I go, I want to hear your thoughts on the story:**

**Is the story good to you despite it being a serious story?**

**Did you like Clyde the jackal A.K.A the Phantom Terrorist as a villain?**

**And lastly, did I get the Canon characters down correctly?**

**Let me know what you think. See you next chapter. :)**


	15. The Final Showdown

[Green Hill, day]

In Classic Eggman's dimension, Green Hill is perfectly normal and the sky isn't red like Modern Eggman's dimension. A portal opens and Sonic, Zero, the Avatar, and the two Eggman's exit out of it. Classic Eggman looks around and he feels relieved that he is finally back in his world.

"Ah, home sweet home." said Classic Eggman.

"Okay, the Sonic and Tails of this world should be around here somewhere." said Sonic.

"How do you know they're here on this island?" Zero asks.

"I lived here in Green Hill since I was young. Alright, people, let's go find them."

"Hey, don't tell me what to do!" said Modern Eggman.

The gang sets off to go find Classic Sonic and Tails. Meanwhile, on the beach side of South Island, Classic Sonic is napping while Classic Tails is attaching some new wheels on his plane.

"Phew, all done with the wheels." Looks at Classic Sonic. "Hey, Sonic, I'm finished." Classic Sonic opens his eyes, gets up, then walks up to Classic Tails. "Now, we can go for a ride around the world like I promised you. Ready to go?" Classic Sonic nods his head. "Alright, let's get going."

"HEY!" Modern Sonic shouts.

Classic Sonic and Tails looks at the direction where they heard Modern Sonic. "Huh?" They see Modern Sonic, Zero, the Avatar, and Classic and Modern Eggman running towards them. "Wait, is that-?" The gang runs up to Classic Sonic and Tails. Modern and Classic Eggman starts panting and breathing heavily after running. "I remember you, you're the Sonic from another dimension." Classic Sonic and Tails noticed the two Eggmen which surprises them both. "Dr. Eggman?"

While panting. "Hello there…Sonic…Tails…" said Classic Eggman.

"What are you doing here, Sonic? Who are these guys? And why are you with Eggman?" Classic Tails asks.

"These two are my new friends, Zero and Buddy. We need your help. Our world is in danger. A madman called the Phantom Terrorist got his hands on the Phantom Ruby and he's taken over my world and captured the rest of my friends. He's going to execute them tomorrow morning unless we stop him."

Classic Sonic and Tails are shocked after hearing Modern Sonic's situation. "What?!" said Tails.

"Yes. I tried to stop him with the power of the Chaos Emeralds, but I still couldn't defeat him even as Super Sonic. Zero, Buddy, and the two Eggman's saved me from him, but they couldn't save the others. We came to your world by using Chaos Control so we can ask for your help and find the Master Emerald."

"Master Emerald? Phantom Ruby? What is the Phantom Ruby?"

Looks at Classic Sonic. "Y'know, the purple ruby with black lines that has the power of Virtual Reality?" said Modern Sonic.

Classic Sonic and Tails now remembers. "OH! _That_ strange gemstone. So, that's what it's called, the Phantom Ruby."

After catching his breath. "Well, actually, I was the one who came up with the name. Now, In order to defeat the Phantom Terrorist, we need to get the Chaos Emeralds to the Master Emerald so we can enhance their powers to unlock a more powerful super form. We also need your assistance along with the me of this world's robot army to save the rest of Sonic's allies and destroy the Phantom Terrorist's army."

"We must find the Master Emerald. Will you help us?" Zero asks.

"Of course we will, right Sonic?" Classic Tails asks. Classic Sonic nods his head in agreement.

"Thanks. Now, we need to find our Knuckles and convince him to let us use the Master Emerald. Is he on Angel Island?" Classic Eggman asks.

"Most likely." said Classic Tails.

"Okay, team, let's go." said Modern Sonic.

* * *

[Angel Island, on top of the Master Emeralds alter]

Classic Knuckles is resting on top of the Master Emerald. He was relaxing while he is protecting the Master Emerald. A portal opens in front of the Emerald. He cracks open his eyes and looks at the portal.

"What the…?"

Sonic and the gang exits out of the portal. Zero and the Avatar are surprised to see how huge the Master Emerald is.

"Whoa! That's the Master Emerald? It's bigger than I thought it'd be."

"Hey!" Classic Knuckles gets off the Master Emerald then puts up his dukes. "Who goes there?!"

"Hey, Knuckles, it's us. We need to ask you something." said Classic Tails.

Classic Knuckles realizes that there are two Sonics and two Eggmans. "What the…? Two Sonics? Two Robotniks?! What the heck is going on here? Explain."

Modern and Classic Sonic nervously scratches their heads. "Well, it's a long story."

Modern Sonic and the others explains everything to Classic Knuckles.

"I see. So, this Phantom Terrorist is using that gemstone to take over your world, captured your friends, and you came to our world to get help from us and the Master Emerald."

"Yes. We know it can neutralize the power of the Chaos Emeralds, but can it also upgrade their powers?" Zero asks.

"Yes…yes it can. The Master Emerald can transform a regular Chaos Emerald into a Super Emerald."

"Super Emerald?" Modern Sonic asks.

"Yes. A Super Emerald is a more powerful version of a Chaos Emerald. It's power is so great, that only one Super Emerald can grant you the same power of all seven normal Chaos Emeralds."

"What? Impossible! A single Super Emerald's power is equal to that of all seven normal Chaos Emeralds put together?" Modern Eggman asks.

"Yes, and don't get any ideas, Robotnik! I'll pound both your faces in it if you try anything." said Classic Knuckles.

"Alright, Alright." Classic and Modern Eggman said. Both of them are laughing internally.

"That's awesome! We have all of the emeralds with us." Classic Eggman takes out and opens the container with all seven Chaos Emeralds in it. "Now, shall we get started?" Modern Sonic asks.

"Well, I've never tried it before, but I'll give it shot. Just sit them all down on top of the columns." Modern and Classic Sonic, Classic Tails, Zero, the Avatar, and Classic and Modern Eggman placed each Chaos Emerald on top of each Column of the alter. Classic Knuckles stands in front of the Master Emerald. "Okay, here goes." As Classic Knuckles closes his eyes and raises both of his hands, the Master Emerald along with the Chaos Emeralds starts glowing. The Chaos Emerald's begin growing larger and the light shins brighter as they kept growing. The emeralds stops glowing as they finally transformed into Super Emeralds. Classic Knuckles reopens his eyes and crosses both of his arms. "Success."

"Whoa, it worked. They're a lot bigger than they was before." said Classic Tails.

Classic Knuckles turns towards Sonic and the gang. "Well, there ya go. Now, all you have to do is stand on top of the Master Emerald and you'll be able to transform into something greater than a super form."

"Alright, I'm up." said Modern Sonic.

"Hold on, I'm doing it, too." said Zero.

"Zero, you-"

"I told you, I want to atone for what I've done. Whether you like it or not, I'm doing this with you." said Zero.

Modern Sonic smiles at Zero. "Heh, alright then, I guess there's no point in trying to stop you. Come on, let's do this."

"Right."

The hedgehog and the jackal jumps on top of the Master Emerald. They're both ready and nod their heads in agreement as they placed their hands together. The Super Emeralds starts glowing again and they fired a beam of light at Sonic and Zero. Both of their bodies starts shaking and their furs are turning white. They both crosses their arms and then, in a blinding flash of light, they transformed. The light was so bright that it is covering the entire island. The others are unable to bear such power, so they look away to avoid being blinded. As the light vanishes, Modern Sonic's fur is flashing all seven colors of the Chaos Emeralds, his quills are sticking up, his eye color is blue, and his aura is white with sparkles around him. Zero's fur is now white while is his stripes are flashing the seven colors of the emeralds, his eye color is blue, and his aura is also white with sparkles around it. Sonic and Zero have transformed into Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero. Everyone, including Classic Knuckles are amazed at Hyper Sonic and Zero's appearance.

"Wow, incredible!" said Tails.

"Their eyes, their fur, they look magnificent!" said Classic Eggman.

Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero looks at themselves.

"Whoa. This energy… I feel stronger than ever." said Hyper Sonic.

"This is…is…amazing."

"Ah-hem! Now that the Emeralds are taken care of, I believe it's time you all help us with the robots." said Modern Eggman.

"By the way, what should we call these forms?" Classic Tails asks.

"Oh, um….with the normal Chaos Emerald, we called it super forms. So, what should we call this form?" Hyper Sonic asks.

"What about ultra form?" Hyper Zero suggests.

"Eh, not feeling it." said Hyper Sonic.

"Ultimate form?"

"Nope."

"Light form?"

"Nah."

"Super duper form?"

"No, dude, just no…"

"Okay, so. Sonic speed…Super Sonic speed…how about Hyper form?"

"Hyper. Yeah, I like that. Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero. I can live with that, can you?"

"Sounds good to me."

"Okay, it's official. We're calling it, Hyper form."

"Okay, you've picked out your names. Now, let's get started already!" said Modern Eggman.

* * *

[Death Row – Execution day]

Meanwhile, back in Modern Sonic's world, one day has passed. This is the day that the rest of the members of the Resistance will be executed. A few Doom soldiers enters the prison block and they opened the cell.

"Wake up, ladies and gentlemen. It's time to roll out."

Everyone woke up and looks at the soldiers.

* * *

[Grey Wasteland]

Later on, Knuckles and the gang are handcuffed and are being escorted to back to the wasteland they've fought Doom corps yesterday. Charmy and Rouges wings are tied up and so is Tails's twin tails so they won't be able to fly away. There are multiple cameras, Doom soldiers, and Brain washed Nega Wisps everywhere. Clyde is holding the cube with the Mother Wisp still trapped inside and he is waiting for his victims to come to him.

"Good morning, my friends. Sleep well?" They all give him no response. "Well, I hope you enjoyed it. It's your last good night you'll ever get. Follow me." As Clyde is escorting them, Tails takes a good look at the Mother Wisp inside the cube. "Mother Wisp?" She looks at Tails in pure despair. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Clyde escorts them to a large deep pit of lava with a metal bridge over it. "Well, this is it. Take them to the bridge." Clyde orders his soldiers.

"Yes, sir. Move it!"

They all had no choice but to obey and walk on the bridge. They all stopped on the center of the bridge and looks down at the lava. They see cameras placed on the walls inside the pit. The cameras are responsible for broadcasting the entire execution

"Knuckles the Echidna. Tails the Fox. Rouge the bat. Vector the Crocodile. Charmy the Bee. Espio the Chameleon. Silver the hedgehog. Amy rose. And Shadow the hedgehog. You all tried to oppose and destroy the almighty Phantom Terrorist and his glorious army. What you did is a serious crime and for that, you will be executed by being burned alive in a pool of lava. If you have any last words you want to say to each other, you better say it now." said the announcer.

"Tails…Amy…I just want to say…being friends with you and Sonic…it's been fun…" said Knuckles.

While Crying. "Same to you, Knuckles." said Tails.

While Crying. "Thanks, for being my friends, you two." said Amy.

While Crying. "My future… Everyone…I'm sorry. I tried my best." said Silver.

"Espio, Charmy, thanks for being my friends. All those times we spent together being great detectives, solving cases, and saving the world from Eggman…it was a blast…" said Vector.

While crying. "I love you guys." said Charmy.

"Same…it's been an honor…being friends with you two…" said Espio.

"Shadow. Well, I just want to say…thanks…for being by my side… you and Omega both. Thank you." said Rouge.

"Same…to you…Rouge…" said Shadow.

"Everyone. It's been nice getting to know you all. And yes…even you, Rouge." said Knuckles.

Rouge felt touched by Knuckles. "You two, big guy. We might have not been the best of friends, but I still enjoyed you all."

"I'm sorry that it has to be like this. If only we were stronger and more careful. Forgive me, goodbye." said Knuckles.

After everyone said their goodbye's, they all close their eyes and prepare themselves for the worst. Clyde smiles as he prepares for the execution. "This is my world now." He raises his thumb up. Some of the civilians are watching the execution on Tv in horror while the others are looking away. "Farewell." Clyde slowly gives a thumbs down, signaling the executioner to close the bridge. The executioner pulls the lever and the bridge closes. They all starts screaming as they're falling in the pit. The screams suddenly stopped and there is no splashes of lava heard. "Hmm?" Clyde noticed and he decided to investigate by looking down in the pit. In surprise, a giant flying robot rises above the pit and it catches all of Sonic's friends and allies. "WHAT THE…?!" The robot flies away from the area.

Opens his eyes. "Huh? Hey, we're alive!" said Charmy.

"But how? Where did this thing come from?" Knuckles asks.

"How did-?"

Suddenly, multiple portals opens around the wasteland. All of Eggman's robots comes out of the portals and begins attacking the soldiers. Multiple death egg robots comes out of the portals. One of them approaches the dumbfounded Clyde and opens it's cockpit, revealing that Classic and Modern Eggman are controlling that robot.

"What?! Eggman-?"

"Why hello, Clyde, it's so nice to see you again. Allow us to show you HOW PAYBACK FEELS LIKE!" said Modern Eggman.

The Eggmen controls the Death Egg to attack Clyde only for the latter to fly out of the way.

While airborne. "Impossible. How did you two escape? And where did you get all these robots?! Oh – You know what - Forget it!" Charging an energy blast. "I'll destroy you both! RAAAAAAUGH!" Before Clyde fires his energy blast, he is struck in the back by a white energy blast. "AAAAAARGH!" The jackal has been blown away and crashes into the ground. Knuckles and the others are watching the events from on top of the flying robot who stopped for a moment.

"Eggman? Why is he helping us?" Tails asks.

"Where did that blast come from?" Shadow asks.

Suddenly, a giant white light appears in the sky. Everyone stops fighting and looks up at it. The light eventually fades away, revealing Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero.

"Is that, SONIC?!" Knuckles asks.

"Sonic, Zero! THEY'RE ALIVE!" said Amy.

The civilians screams with joy after the camera revealed to them that Sonic is still alive. Clyde looks at them in disbelief. "What? NO! Impossible, I KILLED YOU!"

Hyper Sonic launches an energy wave at all of the Nega Wisps. Not only did it break them out of Clyde's mind control, it turned them back to normal two. They all flew up to Hyper Sonic and thanks him. "No problem, guys. I know you don't like Eggman, but he's on our side for now. I need you all to go help them take out the soldiers." The wisps does what Hyper Sonic says then goes back to help Modern and Classic Eggman. Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero flew towards Knuckles and the rest. "Hey, guys, sorry we're late." Hyper Sonic use his energy to break the handcuffs off his friends. "We had to help Eggman with the robots."

"SONIC!" Amy and Tails shouts.

Both of them hugs Hyper Sonic. "Uh…Tails, Amy…"

"We though you were dead!" said Tails.

"Don't scare us like that again!" said Amy.

"Oh, uh… sorry, it wasn't my idea…" said Hyper Sonic.

"What kind of transformation are those?" Shadow asks.

"These are Hyper forms. We took the Chaos Emeralds to the Master Emerald and we used it to transform them into Super Emeralds to take Clyde down." said Hyper Sonic.

"Super Emeralds? I've heard about them, but how did you two survive and get the Master Emerald to do that?" Knuckles asks.

"We'll explain the rest later. Right now, Eggman and his robots are on our side. We need you guys to help them take care of Doom corps. We'll handle Clyde. Sonic, let's go." said Hyper Zero.

"Alright." Amy and Tails releases Hyper Sonic. "We gotta go now. See you guys, later." They both teleport away.

"You heard them, people. Let's get back down there, kick Doom's butt, and take back our world."

They all chant and the robot escorts them back to the ground. Meanwhile, Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero reappears in front of Clyde who is still in disbelief that Sonic and Zero are alive.

"Yo, Clyde, how's it hanging?" Hyper Sonic asks.

"I killed you both, I know I did! How… How are you still alive?!" Clyde asks.

"That doesn't matter. What matters is, that we're taking you and your army down." said Hyper Zero.

"Time to finish this, Clyde." said Hyper Sonic.

Clyde gets up off the ground. "Grr! Don't be so full of yourself. I don't know where you got that power from, but it doesn't matter. This time, I'm going to make sure I kill you both." The jackal powers up. "I'll start off using 40%."

"Bring it on." Hyper Sonic and Zero said.

All three of them flies up in the air. While Sonic and Zero are fighting Clyde, more of Eggman's robots appear from the portals. Team Chaotix, Knuckles, Tails, Amy, Silver, Shadow, and Rouge joined the battle and they're all over powering the soldiers.

"Take this!" Knuckles knocks out a few soldiers.

Shadow uses his light-speed attack to take out multiple soldiers. Tails takes out some of them using his spin dash, Silver immobilizes five soldiers while Team Chaotix, Rouge, and Amy takes them out. Suddenly, the Goliaths, Annihilators, Wardroids, and more Doom robots appear.

"We've got company!" said Rouge.

Some of the Wisp flies into some of the Eggman robots and they're helping them take out the Wardroids.

"Alright, Wisps!" Tails shouts.

Shadow assists some of the robots to take out the Wardroids. The burst wisps are lending the power to Knuckles so he can take out the goliaths. The laser Wisps are doing the same thing with Tails and Silver who are taking on the Annihilators.

* * *

[Doom City]

Meanwhile in Doom city, the Eggman robots have invaded the city and are attacking the soldiers. Some of the robots are helping the civilians escape. The robots have the soldiers outnumbered and are overwhelming them because of it.

"There's too many of them! We need backup, now!" one of the soldiers said.

The other one nearby contacts Clyde, but he's not answering. "Sir, do you copy, where are you? Sir!"

* * *

[Grey wasteland]

Back at the mountaintop, Tails is destroying enemy robots and soldiers with Knuckles behind him. The Avatar along with Classic, Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles appears and joins the fight.

"Hey! Mind if we cut in?" Classic Tails asks.

"Buddy." Modern Tails gasps as he recognizes Classic Sonic and Tails. "It's you two!"

"Hi, long time no see!" said Classic Tails.

"So, you're me from the other dimension, huh?" Modern Knuckles asks Classic Knuckles.

"Yep. You look good." said Classic Knuckles.

"Thanks. Now, let's wreck these clowns together!"

All 6 of them goes back into battle.

Meanwhile with Hyper Sonic and Zero's battle with Clyde, the jackal is being overwhelmed by them as he is being knocked around. Hyper Zero lands a solid kick on Clyde's stomach, causing him to spit up. The attack blew Clyde away. As Clyde is being blown away, Hyper Sonic dashes in front of him then kicks him to the ground. The jackal gets up and he now has scratches and bruises all over his face and parts of his armor has been destroyed.

"I'll have to use 50%."

Clyde powers up then charges at his two opponents. Despite the power up, Clyde is still being knocked around by the hyper formed duo. He fires multiple cube projectiles at them, but it does nothing to them. A Hyper form's invulnerability is much more powerful then a Super form's. Sonic and Zero dashes towards Clyde and lands multiple shots on him. Their powers are too much for him to handle right now, and if he powers up even higher, he'll be at risk of straining his body and his stamina will decrease.

Internal Monologue. "Impossible! This is impossible! Where did they get this power?! I…I can't even hurt them!" Clyde asks.

Hyper Sonic spin dashes Clyde in the stomach. The attack sent him straight into the ground. Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero are waiting for Clyde to fly back up. Hyper Sonic spots the destroyed Omega. "Huh? Omega!" The hedgehog flies down to Omega's location.

"Where are you going?" Hyper Zero asks.

"I'll be right back."

Back with the Resistance, they all are winning the battle against Doom. The Wisps are the biggest help of them all. Shadow and Rouge are fighting a group of robots and soldiers together. Suddenly, the soldiers are being shot at by an unknown attacker.

"Huh? Who did that?" Shadow asks.

When Shadow and Rouge looked at the direction where the lasers came from, both of them are surprised to see that it was Omega who fired the lasers. Omega is fully repaired and operational, and he now joins the battle.

"Omega!" Shadow and Rouge said.

"System restored. Targets confirmed. Extermination mode initiated. E-123 Omega is back baby." said Omega.

"But how? I thought he was destroyed." said Rouge.

"Sonic must've repaired him! Alright, Omega, do your thing! Exterminate these pests!" said Shadow.

"No need to tell me twice!" said Omega.

Omega takes out all of his weapons and starts doing what he does best: destroying his enemies.

* * *

[Underground]

Buried deep underground, Clyde is just laying there with his head down. He is getting multiple calls from different soldiers.

"Come in! This is the captain of a Doom squad in Spagonia! We're under attack! We need backup!"

"Sir! There's robots everywhere in Doom city. We need your help n-"

Clyde took out his earpiece then crushes it with his bare hands. The jackal is slowly starting to lose his sanity.

"How….How could it…end like this? Me… Me?! Beaten…like this? No… It can't be… No! I…I am the strongest! Me…ME! My dream! My army….destroyed! I won't stand for this….I won't! I WON'T STAND FOR THIS! I don't care what happens to my body… and I don't need this army anymore! I'm going to use everything I got! I'm going to destroy that hedgehog and his friends and then… I'M GOING TO DESTROY THIS UNIVERSE!"

* * *

[Grey Wasteland]

Back at the battle, all the Doom soldiers are disappearing and the robots are shutting themselves off. The resistance, the Eggmen, and the Wisps are wondering what's going on.

"Hey, what's happening?" Silver asks.

"The soldiers are disappearing and the robots are shutting off." said Shadow.

The ground starts shaking and then, a large beam of dark purple light shoots out of the ground. The pressure of the energy blows away Hyper Sonic and Zero. Clyde rises up from underground but his eyes turned dark purple, the upper parts of his armor has been blown off, and his fur turned black.

* * *

[Outer Space]

As Clyde ascends into Outer Space, the sounds of the Phantom Ruby grows louder and it's energy is altering Time and Space. The entire universe is turning into a purple dimensional void and there are large cubes floating around the universe.

* * *

[Earth]

The sounds of the ruby suddenly stops and the energy stops rising. After everyone opens their eyes, they see that the sky has turned from red to light purple and there are cubes floating all over the place.

"What the? What is this?" Shadow asks.

"The world. What's going on here?" Silver asks.

"Everyone." said Hyper Sonic.

Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero floats down to the resistance.

"Sonic, Zero, what happened?" Amy asks.

"Our Hyper forms were strong enough to overwhelm him in battle. After he was down on the ground, he released massive amounts of power. It looks like his power changed the entire world."

"No, not just the world." said Classic Eggman as he leaves the Death Egg along with Modern Eggman. "He changed the entire universe, as well."

"The whole universe?" Zero asks.

"Yes. Clyde has released the Phantom Ruby's full potential. It's power is so great, that it turned the entire universe into it's own image. Clyde now has complete control over everything in the universe." said Modern Eggman.

"Oh, man! It was bad enough that he conquered the world, but now he can control the universe?" Knuckles asks.

"I'm afraid so. He must have decided that he wants to start destroying everything. Sonic, Zero, you have to defeat him and destroy the Phantom Ruby. It's the only way to restore the universe to normal. Are you willing to take a life to save the universe, Sonic?" Classic Eggman asks.

Hyper Sonic sighs and gives some thought about this. Sonic is normally against taking lives, but in this situation, it looks like he has no other choice. "If that's the only way to the save the world, then I have to do what I have to do." said Hyper Sonic.

"Sonic." said Tails.

"Don't worry, we'll restore everything. That's a promise. Come on, Sonic, let's defeat Clyde once and for all." said Hyper Zero.

"Right."

The hedgehog and the jackal flies up to Outer Space to pursue Clyde.

* * *

[Outer Space]

In Outer Space, Clyde is seen floating while looking down and breathing heavily. Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero finds him.

"Clyde." said Hyper Zero.

Clyde starts laughing insanely at them. "Hahahahah… Hahahahahahaha." He lifts his head up and looks at Zero and Sonic insanely. "Hello, Zero. Sonic. Are you here to stop me?"

"Um, yeah, obviously." said Hyper Sonic.

Clyde starts laughing again.

"Okay, he's completely gone insane." said Hyper Zero.

"isn't he always?" Hyper Sonic asks.

"Well, yeah, but not like this." said Hyper Zero.

"I'm at full power… but I don't know how long my body can last. Before my time runs out… I'm going to destroy both of you… and then… I'm going to go back down to Earth… and I'm going to kill your friends. And then… I'm going to destroy this entire timeline. Yeah…that's what I'm going to do. Sonic. Zero. Prepare yourselves. 'Cause this…will be your last fight you'll ever have. Ah."

Without warning, Clyde dashes towards Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero.

"LOOK OUT!" Hyper Zero shouts to Hyper Sonic.

They dodge Clyde's attack. They both counterattacks Clyde by kicking him in the back. Clyde is blown away, but he catches himself Mid-air. He then uses his Phantom Ruby blaster then launches it at his targets. After dodging the blast, the duo fires a volley of energy blasts at Clyde. Clyde dodges them all and makes his way towards Sonic and Zero. The two rushes towards Clyde and they clashed fists. The clash altered space and time as the atmosphere is changing colors. They all are flying around the place and are exchanging attacks on each other. Full power Clyde is holding his own against Sonic and Zero in their Hyper forms. Hyper Sonic launches an energy blast at Clyde only for the jackal to open a dimensional portal and uses it to shield himself from the blast. After closing the portal, Zero kicks Clyde in the face then fires an energy blast in Clyde's stomach. The jackal is blown away from the blast, but he recovers eventually. Clyde is becoming tired and his max power is starting to take a tool on his body. So, he realize that he has to end this fight quickly, however, the odds aren't in his favor as Sonic and Zero are giving him a whole lot of trouble to defeat. They're too fast for him to land a single hit. After a few exchanges, Clyde suddenly stops to catch his breath for a moment. Sonic and Zero smirks at him and chuckles.

"Argh! Stop mocking me! RAAAAH!"

Clyde charges at them at his screams with anger. His speed has decreased compared to how it was at the start of the fight. Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero easily dodges the attack. Clyde turns around and launches a energy blast. Hyper Zero stops the blast by creating a blade made out of his energy then slices it in half. Clyde charges at Zero, but Hyper Sonic stops him by using homing attack to hit in the jaw. As Clyde is being blown away, Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero pursues him and they both kicks the Phantom Ruby on his chest, causing it to crack.

* * *

[Earth]

Clyde crashed back on the ground on Earth. The two heroes waits for him to resurface.

"THIS ISN'T OVER!" Clyde shouts.

The jackal released an explosive energy as he flies back up. Due to the Phantom Ruby being damaged, there is a slight glitch-like effect around the Jackal. The others are watching the fight on top of one of the Death Egg robots.

"What's happening to him?" Classic Tails asks.

"Sonic and Zero must have damaged the Phantom Ruby. The damage is causing Clyde to start glitching out and it's causing more pain on his body. If Sonic and Zero hits the Phantom Ruby a few more times, his power will start decreasing, the glitching aura will cause more strain on his body, and the Phantom Ruby will likely be destroyed." said Modern Eggman.

"So, are you sure that he's finished this time?" Espio asks.

"It looks like it." said Modern Eggman.

The glitching is straining Clyde's body, but he's powering through it. "No! I'm not finished yet. Come! Sonic! Zero! Let's end this NOW!"

Clyde charges at them again. He tries to punch them, but they teleport out of the way. Hyper Zero reappears behind him then lands a solid kick on Clyde's back. As Clyde is being blown away, he fires countless cube projectiles at Hyper Zero. The Jackal easily dodges them all then he launches a deadly 20 hit assault combo of punches and kicks on Clyde. Clyde was unable to dodge nor block any of Zero's attacks. Hyper Zero lands the final combo blow on the Phantom Ruby causing it to crack some more. Hyper Zero pulls back from the glitching Clyde. The glitch-like effect and pain is getting worse for Clyde, and his energy is starting to decrease as his fur is slowly returning normal. Hyper Sonic reappears in front of Hyper Zero.

"My turn." said Hyper Sonic.

The hedgehog charges his light-speed attack then launches it at Clyde. Realizing that Hyper Sonic is charging at him, Clyde puts a barrier around himself in an attempt to block the attack. Hyper Sonic easily breaks through the barrier then he begins hitting Clyde from everything direction. As Clyde is being blown away, Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero pursues him. Hyper Zero punches Clyde deep into his stomach, causing the jackal to spit-up. Hyper Sonic moves in and punches the Phantom Ruby, causing it to shatter even more. Clyde crash landed on the ground. As the jackal struggles to stand up, his fur has turned back to normal and the glitch-like effect is really hurting him.

"Look! He's back to normal." said Silver.

"It's over." said Shadow.

For the final blow, Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero is forming a powerful boost attack.

"DOUBLE HYPER BOOST!" Hyper Sonic shouts.

They launch the double Hyper boost directly at Clyde to finish this once and for all. The jackal is in so much pain that he can't even move to dodge the attack nor does he have enough power to block it. All he can do is sit there and wait to get hit. The attack makes contact with the Phantom Ruby and Clyde was tossed up in the air then he lands face first on the ground. Hyper Sonic and Hyper Zero separated then flies down in front of Clyde. The glitching is causing him serious pain to the point where he is screaming in agony.

"AAAAAAAARRRGH! AAAAH! THE PAIN! IT HURTS! THIS IS THE WORST PAIN I'VE EVER FELT!" Clyde shouts.

"The pain your feeling is the exact same pain you put all those people through. How does it feel to be helpless? Tell me, does it hurt?" Hyper Zero asks.

"It's over, Clyde, you're finished." Said Hyper Sonic.

"S-S-So…this is it, huh? W-W-Well, there's no point…in crying over spilled…milk. Zero… Sonic… you've beaten me. Congratulations… you two fought well." Clyde stops his meltdown and accepts his fate. Beams of light starts coming out of Clyde's body. "UGH! AAH! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!" The jackal and the Phantom Ruby exploded. After the explosion, the universe changed back to normal. The sky is no longer purple. The sun finally comes back out. Clyde and the Phantom Ruby are gone and the world is at peace once again. Everyone in the world starts cheering now that they're finally free. Sonic and Zero reverted back to their base forms.

"He's gone." said Zero.

Sonic closes his eyes. "Hmm." Then he reopens them and gives Zero a thumbs. "Good work, partner." said Sonic.

Zero smiles and gives Sonic a thumbs up as well.

* * *

[Mountaintop, day]

Some time later, the Wisps are reunited with their mother. Sonic, Zero, and everyone else looks at them as they smaller Wisp apologizes to Sonic for what happen.

"What did they say, Tails?" Sonic asks.

Tails uses his Miles electric to translate the Wisps. "They said: 'We're so sorry for what we did. We couldn't control ourselves. Please forgive us.'"

"Hey, don't worry about it, guys. It wasn't your fault, so don't blame yourselves, alright?" said Sonic.

The Wisps are now happy. The Mother Wisp starts saying something.

"She said: 'Thank you so much for saving me and my children from that evil man. We are forever in your debt, Sonic the Hedgehog.'" said Tails.

"Ah, no problem. You guys be safe going back home now. 'til we meet again." Sonic said while winking.

The Wisps bows to everyone then flies back to Planet Wisp. A portal suddenly opens.

"Looks like it's time for us to go." said Classic Tails.

"Thanks for the help, guys. We couldn't have done it without ya." said Sonic.

"You're welcome. If you need us again, we're always happy to help. Come on, guys, it's time to go."

Classic Tails flies up in the air and heads to the portal.

"Be safe now, Sonic. Hope to see you again." Tails said to Classic Sonic.

Classic Sonic nods to Tails then follows Classic Tails to the portal.

"Well, thanks for the help, buddy. I wish we could hang out for a little longer." Modern Knuckles said to Classic Knuckles.

"Same here. But who knows, maybe we'll see each other again someday." said Classic Knuckles.

"Heh. Maybe. You take care of the Master Emerald now. And…" He whispers in his ear. "Watch out for Eggman. He'll try anything to get his hands on it."

"Hey, don't tell me something I already know. I can take care of myself. See ya."

Classic Knuckles enters the portal.

"Well, my glorious me from another dimension. It's time we part our ways. Even though it wasn't the most pleasant time we've spent together, it was nice seeing you again." said Modern Eggman.

"I hope we join forces again someday." Turns around. "Well, so long my good man. I have a hedgehog to destroy. Farewell."

Classic Eggman enters the dimension and it closes behind him.

"Well, I guess that's that."

"Boss!" said Orbot.

"Huh?" Eggman turns to Orbot and Cubot flying up to him. "Orbot. Cubot."

Cubot hugs his boss. "We miss you."

"Yes. I say that I'd rather put up with you over the Phantom Terrorist any day." said Orbot.

"What was that?" Eggman asks.

"Oh, nothing. It's good to have you back, Boss." said Orbot.

"That's what I thought." Turns Sonic and friends. "Well, it's been fun, my fine frenemies, but I'm going take a vacation. I definitely need it after everything I've been through." said Modern Eggman as he walks off.

"Hey, Eggman." said Sonic.

Stops and looks at Sonic. "What?"

Sonic winks at Eggman and gives him a thumbs up. "Thanks for the help."

"Whatever. Orbot, Cubot. I want you two to give me a nice massage once we get back to base. Let's go."

As Eggman walks off, Orbot and Cubot went from happy to feeling disgusted. "On second thought, maybe being controlled by the Phantom Terrorist wasn't so bad, after all." said Orbot.

"I agree." said Cubot.

"Hey!" Eggman shouts.

"Coming! Uuuugh!" Orbot and Cubot said.

Eggman and his two lackeys exits the plot. Sonic walks up to Zero who is looking up at the sun.

"So, you're going off?" Sonic asks.

"Yes. There are some things I still have to do. It's time to move on from my past and be focused on the future." Looks at Sonic. "Thank you, Sonic for helping me." said Zero.

"No problem, Zero, and thanks for helping us." said Sonic.

The Avatar walks up to Zero. The jackal looks at them while smiling. "Heh. And thank you for helping me, too. I have to go now, but I hope I'll see you again." The Avatar and Zero fists bumps before he leaves them. [_Song lyric: Before I say goodbye to you, one more last Fist Bump._]

"Thank you, Zero, I'm sure your family is very proud of you now. Take care." said Tails.

"Bye, Zero, be safe." said Amy.

Sonic and the others says goodbye to Zero. The jackal waves back as he walks away from them. Knuckles walks up to Sonic and Tails.

"Well there he goes. So, now what?" Knuckles asks.

"Obviously, we have to clean up and restore everything in the world. Come on, everyone, let's get started."

Rouge noticed that Shadow is gone. "Hey, where'd Shadow go?" Rouge asks.

Somewhere else in the wasteland, Zero is walking alone. He stops for a moment as he sees Shadow waiting for him as he's leaning on a boulder. Zero and Shadow looks at each other with sternness.

"I got somewhere to be. What do you want?" Zero asks.

"I have something to say to you." Shadow walks up to Zero. "You maybe good with everyone else, but I still have my doubts about you." He stops right next to Zero. "I'm here to warn you. If you try something like that again, I won't hesitate to take you down this time."

"I have no interest in endangering the planet again. I don't have the time nor the patience to talk to you. Now, get out of my sight." Zero starts walking off.

"When we first encountered, I thought you was nothing but a weakling. You proved me wrong." Zero stops walking and looks surprised. "Good job." Shadow teleports away.

Zero closes his eyes. "Hmph. Whatever." Then walks off. The jackal is heading off to a destination that only he knows. Ending the chapter.

[End of the Final Chapter]


	16. Saying Goodbye

**Epilogue:**

[Desert, day]

Outside of the Jackal Squad's old HQ, a large white truck pulled up in front of the warehouse. Zero gets out of the drivers seat, walks to the back, and opens the hatch. Inside, there are all the equipment from the Jackal Squad's training facility.

* * *

[Jackal Squad HQ]

As Zero enters the warehouse, there are a lot of spiderwebs all over the place and the power is out. The jackal begins packing all of the belongings of his deceased squad members and he places them all in boxes. After he got them all packed, he puts every single one of them inside the truck.

* * *

[Desert, day]

After storing all of the things in the truck, Zero walks up to Stryker's grave and he creates more graves of Claire, Ace, Scar, Radar, Brawn, and even his own father, Axel the jackal right next and in between Stryker's. He bows to the graves after he was finished.

"Hey, guys. I just…came by to get your things. And…to apologize for what happened to you. Also, to thank you for everything you've done for me. Being my friends, family, and being the people I looked up to." He then looked at Axel's grave. "Father. I know you hated me, but… I think I now understand why. Having to spend your entire life serving under someone like Clyde must've been dreadful. He never showed any care for you, but even still, you did your best to try to do a good job for him. All you wanted was someone to love you, and that someone was my mother. When she died, you felt like you lost everything… and you blamed it on me. I don't condone what you did, but you're still my father. You were just a broken man. And I hope that maybe you'll find a way to see mother again." He looks at Stryker's grave. "Boss. I let you down before. I apologize for that. If you still don't have a reason to forgive me, then I completely understand. And I hope that someday you'll forgive me for my mistakes." Stands up. "I don't know what I'm gonna do yet. But I'll think of something along the way. Thank you all for everything. Rest in peace." Before Zero walks away, he looks at his father's grave again and says: "Goodbye, Axel.".

The jackal closes the back of the truck, gets back in the front seat, then starts the engine. Before he leaves, he looks at the warehouse for one last time. He starts seeing visions of all the former members of the Jackal Squad. Zero is surprised at what he's seeing. The visions shows that the Jackal Squad are smiling then they start waving at Zero.

"Goodbye, Boss. We'll miss you." They all said before they fade away.

Zero starts tearing up for a moment. He wipes his eyes and smiles at the Warehouse. "Goodbye, my friends." After saying his final goodbye, Zero drives off into the sunset.

The End.


End file.
